Karneisha Wolfe, a third-year Ph.D. candidate, is a recipient of the prestigious 2021 Deloitte Foundation Doctoral Fellowship. The award is designed to support outstanding accounting Ph.D. candidates in hopes of strengthening the quantity and quality of accounting professors. Each year, the foundation awards fellowships to 10 top accounting Ph.D. candidates across the U.S. from the approximately 100 universities invited to nominate a doctoral candidate for the fellowship. Visit Deloitte to learn more about the award.

“Companies are increasingly utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) to improve the accuracy of their accounting processes. Karneisha’s research examines how external auditors utilize this data during their audit judgments. She is a highly motivated, bright, and committed doctoral student who is examining a timely topic that has the potential to contribute to the practice and theory of auditing” says her advisor, Dr. Sudip Bhattacharjee, Professor of Accounting and Information Systems. Last year, another Ph.D. candidate at Virginia Tech was also awarded the Deloitte Foundation Doctoral Fellowship. “Given the competitiveness of this fellowship, winning this award two years in a row means that our Ph.D. Program has risen to a high level with national recognition. It’s a great achievement for our Ph.D. Program.” says the Director of the Ph.D. Program in Accounting and Information Systems, Dr. Ling Lisic.

A native of Charleston, SC, Karneisha graduated with honors from the University of South Carolina, earning a bachelor's degree in accounting and human resource management. She also holds a master’s of accountancy from Wake Forest University and she is a licensed CPA in the state of North Carolina. Prior to entering the doctoral program, Karneisha worked as a controller at a Fortune 100 company and an auditor at a public accounting firm. She is also a 2018 AICPA Accounting Doctoral Scholars Program scholar.

Karneisha’s primary research interests are auditing and financial reporting. She enjoys researching topics that align with her unique work experience. After completing her Ph.D., Karneisha hopes to join the faculty at an university that champions research and values teaching, where she can help to increase diversity within the accounting profession.

The Deloitte Foundation, founded in 1928, is a not-for-profit organization that supports education in the U.S. through a variety of initiatives that help develop the next generation of diverse business leaders, and their influencers, and promote excellence in teaching, research and curriculum innovation. The Foundation sponsors an array of national programs relevant to a variety of professional services, benefiting high school students, undergraduates, graduate students and educators.