Dr. Gaurav Kumar is an associate professor and teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in the Department of Accounting. His research interests are in empirical research for international financial accounting.
In the past five years, Kumar has written four publications and has several other works in progress. He presented six times, including three at the national American Accounting Association (AAA) and one at the India Finance Association, a premier finance organization in India.
Kumar has been instrumental in the development of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). The IFRS Foundation provides a standard global language for business practices so that business accounts are comparable and understandable internationally. In the near future, American public companies will be required to use IFRS standards. Because of this, Kumar incorporates IFRS into the curriculum of the accounting classes he teaches, and he advises students on the difference between IFRS and U.S. accounting standards for financial guidelines. He has also taught three seminars on IFRS to the Arkansas Society of Certified Public Accountants.
Kumar is known for motivating students to conduct their own research. In 2013, he mentored two graduate students who joined him in completing a manuscript, which was accepted at the national meeting of the AAA. A UA Little Rock alumnus and one of his co-authors credits Kumar with helping them understand the “broader picture” of accounting. Kumar also recently received a $5,000 grant from the College of Business to conduct joint research with graduate students.
Kumar earned his Ph.D. in Accounting from the University of Mississippi, a Master of Finance and Control from Kurukshetra University in India, and a Bachelor of Commerce with honors from Panjab University in India.