BBA/MAcc students Jonathan Gibson, Sam Jew, Tyler Blackwell and Hunter Hansen interrogated a “fraud suspect” (played by Deonette Lambert, SOA Ph.D. student) as faculty member Kevan Jensen looked on. The interrogation was the culmination of a 3-week fraud investigation project in the graduate fraud class, a student favorite in the BBA/MAcc curriculum.
Student groups conducted the investigation of a fictitious company, Tallahassee Bone Crushers. Each group’s task was to uncover the mechanics of a fraud and identify the perpetrator. After analyzing the evidence, each group identified at least one employee as a suspect. The “suspects,” portrayed by Ph.D. students, were then interrogated.
“My experience is that students really get emotionally vested in the project,” Jensen said. “It seems extremely realistic to them, and it forces them to apply what they’ve learned, as well as use logic and critical thinking throughout.”
BBA/MAcc student Jenna Ling described her experience.
“Students are so engaged in the fraud investigation because it forces you to consider all elements of how fraudulent activity happens in a company or organization,” she said. “You have to kind of think like a fraudster in order to know what to look for. It’s not every day that you get to think like a fraud perpetrator.”
