FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 99-141 Chief Accountant Is Seeking Candidates for Six Professional Accounting Fellow Positions Washington, DC, October 25, 1999 -- The Securities and Exchange Commission's Office of the Chief Accountant announced that it is now accepting applications for six Professional Accounting Fellow positions in the Office of the Chief Accountant. This highly successful program, begun in 1972, is designed to provide outstanding opportunities for personal development and career enhancement. During their two year term, Fellows work directly with the Chief Accountant, and are involved in the study and development of rule proposals under the Federal securities laws, liaison with professional accounting standard-setting bodies, and consultation with registrants on accounting and reporting matters. Of the six Fellows who will be selected in early 2000, the Chief Accountant would like to select individuals with the following backgrounds to begin in June 2000: * One individual with both a background in accounting for financial instruments and experience with financial institutions; * Two individuals for positions which will not be weighted toward a particular background or experience, although familiarity with accounting for consolidations, revenue recognition, business combinations, or other forms of business alliances or current auditing experience would be helpful; and * One individual with experience working with international accounting and/or auditing standards. Additionally, the Chief Accountant would like to select individuals with the following backgrounds to begin in November 2000: * One individual with both a background in accounting for financial instruments and experience with financial institutions; and * One individual for a position which will not be weighted toward a particular background or experience, although familiarity with accounting for consolidations, revenue recognition, business combinations, or other forms of business alliances or current auditing experience would be helpful. Applicants should have a minimum of nine to ten years' experience in public accounting or its equivalent, with at least three to four years as a manager. They should be thoroughly familiar with technical accounting and auditing literature as well as with current issues confronting the profession. Applicants are required to submit background information and an eight to twelve page essay on a current accounting or auditing issue in one of the following topical areas: 1. Improving the business reporting model; 2. Consolidations - including the control model and how it should be applied to SPEs and its reconciliation to Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) Statement No. 125; 3. Improving audit effectiveness; 4. Accounting and/or auditing issues associated with implementation of International Accounting Standards; 5. Implications of financial engineering of transactions under FASB Statements No. 125 and 133; 6. Accounting and/or auditing issues raised by e-commerce businesses; or 7. Accounting for intangibles. Interested applicants must submit: a resume; Standard Form 171, "Personal Qualification Statement"; form OF-612, "Optional Application for Federal Employment"; or any other written format which clearly identifies the announcement number, title, series, and grade of the job for which you are applying. Standard Form 171, OF-612 and "Applying for a Federal Job", which highlights the information to be included in your resume or other written submission, can be obtained from the Office of Personnel Management, Securities and Exchange Commission, 450 Fifth Street, NW, Washington, DC, 20549. OF-612 is also available on the internet at http://www.opm.gov. Inquiries should be addressed to Eric G. Jacobsen in the Office of the Chief Accountant at (202) 942-4400. The Commission's policy of affording equal employment opportunity to all interested candidates will be followed. # # #