The rapid digital transformation of finance is changing accounting practices and creating new competency requirements for accounting professionals. This study examines the cultivation of digital and intelligent accounting professionals in higher vocational colleges from an industry education integration perspective. Based on questionnaire surveys and depth interviews in Anhui Province, China, the study identifies key gaps between enterprise competency requirements and current talent cultivation practices. To address these gaps, a talent cultivation model is developed around school-enterprise collaboration and competency-oriented development. The model integrates curriculum reform, faculty development, practical training, and teaching assessment. Its effectiveness is examined through a one-year pilot implementation and a comparative analysis of two parallel classes. The results show that the pilot class achieved better outcomes than the control class in vocational skill certification, financial big data analytics, workplace assessment, and employer satisfaction. The findings provide preliminary evidence for the feasibility of the proposed model, and highlight the importance of deeper industry education integration in developing accounting professionals for the digital economy. The study contributes a practice-oriented framework for improving the alignment between higher vocational accounting education and changing enterprise competency requirements.
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