Ohio State vs. Indiana for accounting: which school is better for an accounting major?

The biggest practical tradeoff is this: Indiana tends to have the more distinct national edge in undergraduate business recruiting and brand through the Kelley School, while Ohio State gives you a very strong accounting path with huge campus scale, a massive alumni network, and excellent access to a major in-state job market. For accounting specifically, both can get you to Big Four and other strong firms, but Indiana is often the school people mention first when they are talking about undergraduate business placement. Ohio State is still highly respected, especially in the Midwest, and its size creates a lot of recruiting volume and employer connections.

Indiana’s Kelley School is especially known for undergraduate business education, and that matters because accounting recruiting often starts early and runs through structured career services, student organizations, and employer pipelines. Kelley also has a reputation for strong professional development and for sending students into public accounting, corporate accounting, and consulting-adjacent roles. If you want a business school environment where undergraduate business is a central identity of the campus, Indiana has a real advantage.

Ohio State’s Fisher College of Business is also a serious option for accounting, and one thing in its favor is breadth. Columbus is a growing city with a lot of internship access during the school year, not just in the summer, and Ohio State’s alumni base is enormous. That can be useful if you want flexibility across accounting, finance, operations, or corporate roles, or if you think you may stay in Ohio after graduation.

For overall opportunity, Ohio State is close enough that cost, direct admission conditions, honors options, and where you want to work after college could easily matter more than the gap in program prestige. If both were similarly affordable, I would lean Indiana for accounting; if Ohio State is meaningfully cheaper or a better geographic fit, it is absolutely strong enough to choose without feeling like you compromised your career prospects.