There Is A Busy Season
Accounting is typically a standard 9-to-5 job, except for certain times of the year with impending deadlines. The most notable deadline is April 15 for tax accountants. For most tax accountants, the heavy lifting starts after New Years Day right up to April 15.
Leyenhorst describes these times as a surge of deliverables which is further complicated by clients who tend to provide information at the last minute.
While these dynamics can lead to stress and challenges, there are steps that can mitigate this, such as setting target dates for clients to submit what is needed and equipping them with helpful tools, such as checklists, to ensure you receive everything that is needed to do the work, Leyenhorst says.
During the busy season, long days and weekend work become the norm as accountants work to get their clients finances in order. But the plus side is that things slow down significantly after that time period. In this way, accounting careers offer some variety in the yearly schedule.
How To Start A Career In Accounting
Are you looking for a fulfilling career that requires brainpower, prizes analytic thinking, and allows you to help change peoples lives? If so, you should consider becoming a Certified Public Accountant, or CPA. How to start a career in accounting, you ask? This article will provide straightforward guidance. Above all, accounting is an excellent job for anyone with a good head for numbers. In addition, a sense of the economy is helpful, too. After that, CPAs help people manage their money, create budgets, file taxes, and more.
CPA Firm Technology has a history of supporting the public accounting profession by helping professionals find functional, reliable technology. Wed also like to help empower the next generation of accountants to discover that this is the field for them. Heres a look at how you get started in accounting, what you can expect from the accounting profession, and what kind of living you can earn as an accountant.
What Can You Do With An Accounting Degree
Tech, manufacturing, fashion, entertainment no matter what the field, and no matter how big the company, all businesses have one thing in common. They all need accounting pros. Whether youre bookkeeping for a small business, working for a large accounting firm, or developing a financial strategy for a major corporation, accounting programs can open the door to a huge variety of exciting career paths.
As an accounting major, youll learn about more than tax codes. Youll learn critical thinking skills to help determine the long-term goals of a business . And youll learn how to communicate those plans clearly and effectively.
Read on to discover what youll be able do with an accounting degree. With so many career options to choose from, you might be surprised.
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Is Accounting A Good Career Choice For You
Accounting is an attractive career path due to its high stability, practical and transferable skills gained, and a myriad of exit opportunities.
Some of the main benefits of becoming an accountant include:
- Lucrative salaries can be enjoyed once a senior position has been obtained
- Reasonably high level of job security, experienced accountants are in high demand by all sectors.
- Ability to work in a wide range of sectors, or set up your own practice
- Enhancing your chartered accountancy title with other professional certification increases employability significantly
However, there are also some reasons why accounting can be challenging and even frustrating on occasion. Here are a handful of potential pitfalls:
- Entry-level accountants will be required to perform grunt work for years at a time, and relatively low pay vs. investment banking counterparts.
- The learning curve never truly ends
- Senior positions are associated with a massive amount of responsibility
- Some consider accounting to be rather dull and boring
Ultimately, it is prudent to weigh both sides of the equation if you hope to make an informed choice. Those who truly commit to the possibility of becoming an accountant should nonetheless enjoy a long and rewarding career. It also offers you the flexibility and freedom to run your own business offering accountancy services and finance consulting, we hope this article help shed a light on your career decision making process!
Five Popular Specialization Paths For Accountants
As your accounting career progresses, you have the opportunity to specialize within different accounting disciplines. Whether you choose the public or private accounting pathor switch between the twospecializations can help you qualify for new positions and advance your career.
Lets look at five popular specializations, how these roles differ, and the education and/or credentials that are beneficial for growing your expertise.
Tax AccountantThese professionals help individuals and organizations file their taxes, take advantage of deductions and credits, avoid audits, and receive the maximum available return.
- Level Up Your Education: A masters degree program is a great way to gain specialized tax expertise. For example, Franklin University offers an M.S. in Accounting with a focus area of taxation. Focus area curriculum helps you gain expertise in individual, corporate, pass-through entity and federal tax practices.
- Earn Professional Credentials: A CPA license or an Enrolled Agent credential can both be beneficial for a career in taxation. An EA credential recognizes professionals, including CPAs, licensed by the government to represent taxpayers. The EA designation is assigned by the IRS, and candidates must pass a three-part comprehensive test covering individual and business tax returns.
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Are You In The Market For Entry
Are you looking for an entry-level jobs for accountants? Accounting is a diverse field with many career paths, and entry-level roles can range from data entry and bookkeeping to financial analysis and forensics.
Before you start applying for entry-level accountant jobs, youll want to consider whether public or private accounting is a better match for you. Public accounting is a promising choice for recent graduates who want to work with many clients. Private accounting working in-house for a single company lets you go deep into a specific industry.
Or, if youre interested in solving financial mysteries, you might head into a career in auditing or forensic accounting.
Heres a closer look at where you might look for entry-level accountant jobs.
Benefits Of Going To College For Accounting
Many ambitious and analytical students wonder: Is accounting a good major? The answer is a yes.
Depending on your study preferences and your career plans, accounting could be the perfect major. Key benefits of pursuing an Associate of Science in Accounting include:
- Develop transferable skills. Even if you do not ultimately work in accounting, the skills you gain as an accounting student could prove invaluable for the entire span of your career. You will obtain impressive analytical abilities, as well as a basic understanding of business finances. This could serve you well if you ultimately transition into finance, project management, marketing, or other related areas.
- Opportunities for further education.The Associate in Science in Accounting could be the first step on your path to an accounting career. Your degree satisfies a portion of the requirements for gaining your CPA, but states require at least a bachelors degree and 150 semester hours of specific coursework.
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Salary And Career Outlook
Your CPA license will give you a significant edge when it comes to earning capacity. Investopedia estimates that certified accountants make 5 to 15% more than their un-licensed peers. They also report that the median annual salary for CPAs in 2012 was $73,800 and topped off at about $124,000. However, experienced CPAs and partners in public practice firm stand to make far more.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, demand for CPAs will grow at a steady, consistent rate of 4% from 2019 to 2020 and beyond. The demand for accounting skills is projected to increase. Job security will generally be linked closely with economic health. Above all, CPAs remain essential even in economic downturns so that you may have some additional protection in your new career.
Go For Accounting Internship
Internship prepares you for your next career step in accounting. You will gain work experience and skills to open up your mind and pursue your career effectively. In fact, before you start working in some accounting firms, you will require experience in accounting before you get the job. You may need over one year of experience to land a competitive job.
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Number Of Job Opportunities
Some people worry that accounting is becoming obsolete with all technological advancements. Thats just not true!
While the roles are shifting and becoming more analytical rather than data-centric, technology is creating a greater variety of exciting jobs in the accounting industry.
Accounting isnt going anywhere. Even with advancements in artificial intelligence and automation, businesses need accountants to interpret complex tax laws and ever-changing regulations.
Plus, accountants help manage and decode financial information to help organisations make informed business decisions.
How Do I Start A Career In Accounting
So you have an analytical mind, are organised, are attentive to detail, love working with people and numbers, and would like to know how to become an accounting professional.
As with any career, there are many pathway options to choose from depending on your budget, time available and your career destination.
In this blog, we outline several options when choosing a pathway for your accounting career plan.
Pathways to a Career in Accounting
We recommend that all our students assess how much study time they will have with family and work commitments. Your goal should be an achievable success!
One of the advantages of studying vocational courses, as opposed to university, is that you can achieve nationally-recognised qualifications in shorter and cheaper timeframes. You can then add to these qualifications to progress your career at a pace that suits you and your circumstances.
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Do I Need A Cpa To Begin My Own Accounting Firm
In most cases, a CPA license is required to open an accounting firm. This license is awarded to individuals who have passed the CPA exam and met the education and experience requirements set forth by their states licensing board. Without a CPA license, it is illegal to offer accounting services to the public.
There are a few exceptions to this rule. In some states, non-CPAs may offer certain accounting services, such as bookkeeping or tax preparation, under the supervision of a licensed CPA. However, these individuals are not allowed to provide more complex services, such as auditing or financial consulting, without a CPA license.
Therefore, if you are not a CPA and you want to open an accounting firm, you will need to either obtain a CPA license or partner with a licensed CPA who can oversee your work.
Starting A Career In Accounting
More students than ever are interested in a career in accounting. So, where do you begin? What do you need in order to become a successful accountant? How can you market yourself in the accounting world to stand out among employers? This is a broad overview of what you can do now, and what it takes to be a successful accountant.
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Choose Your Accounting Specialism
Accounting careers can be split into two key areas: management accounting and financial accounting. Within these divisions are further specialist fields such as budget and financial analysis, and working as a controller.
The difference between management accounting and financial accounting is that the former provides information to people within a company, while financial accounting provides information to those outside of it, such as shareholders.
Unlike financial accounting, management accounting isn’t required by law and only covers particular products. On the other hand, financial accounting covers the entire organisation.
Most graduates will enter accounting through financial accountancy, which can provide a variety of career prospects such as:
How To Start An Accounting Business
To start an accounting business, youll need to first gain the necessary education and work experience in the field of accounting. This typically involves completing a college degree in accounting or a related field and obtaining professional certification such as a CPA license.
Once you have the necessary education and experience, youll need to decide on the specific services that your accounting business will offer. Some common services provided by accounting businesses include tax preparation, bookkeeping, and financial consulting.
Next, youll need to create a business plan that outlines your goals and strategies for success. This plan should include details such as your target market, pricing structure, and marketing and advertising strategies.
Once you have a solid plan in place, youll need to take care of the necessary legal and regulatory requirements for starting a business. This may include registering your business with your local government, obtaining any necessary licenses and permits, and setting up a business bank account.
Finally, youll need to develop a marketing and advertising plan to promote your accounting business and attract clients. This may involve creating a website, networking with potential clients, and advertising your services through social media, local newspapers, and other channels.
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How To Get Experience In Accounting
Seek out jobs that align well with qualities you need to be a successful accountant. They don’t necessarily need to be in the accounting field. You do, however, need to pay attention to the ways you can describe your position on a resume to showcase skills that are important for accountants. For example, you might show that you’re analytical and detail oriented by describing how you use electronic inventory control systems to pull merchandise to and back-stock merchandise from a retail sales floor accurately and quickly. You might demonstrate math ability and your trustworthiness by working as a cashier.
Components Of A Successful Accounting Career: Skills Credentials Tools And Technology
What kind of Skills Are Required?
Accountants and CPAs tend to excel at math. They also have excellent analytical skills and, because they have to communicate with others, often have good interpersonal skills. Though many of these individuals are already good with their finances prior to working as an accountant or CPA, a perk of the job is gaining even more financial knowledge, which can help accountants and CPAs with personal financial matters.
However, accountants need more than simply financial knowledge to do their jobs well. They must also have strong organizational skills and be extremely detail-oriented. Accounting records must be impeccable since businesses rely on them to make sound decisions. Sloppy records cannot only put a company’s financial stability in question they may also have legal repercussions under corporate responsibility laws.
Credentials
An accounting degree can help get you started, but to really hit a positive career trajectory, consider other credentials such as the following:
Bachelor’s degree in business, finance, accounting, or economics postgraduate licensure and/or certification
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Best Universities For Accountancy Courses
The best university for accountancy might depend on a number of factors, such as student satisfaction, average graduate salaries and specific module information. Our course search offers all this comprehensive data and more to help you decide whats right for you.League tables are also a good reference point when choosing a university. Make sure you check the sources of league tables as they can be biased. The Guardian, The Times and The Complete University Guide are some of the more impartial places to look.Remember: university league tables are just one source of information to help you decide on a university course. They cant tell you whether a course is right for you.
Start A Career In Accounting Leading To Your Cpa Certification
CPAs are a valuable resource when it comes to a businesss or individuals financial security. In conclusion, there are many paths and specialties open to a career CPA. How to start a career in accounting? A decision to invest in your future with experience and education! If youre drawn to this line of work and are naturally analytical, this might be the job for you!
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Life After School Or University
If youre thinking about studying accountancy or have already started, you may be wondering where your qualification will lead. Surely dedicating a number of years, to whats widely considered to be a challenging qualification to achieve, must lead to some really fantastic opportunities? Our Tutor, Ian Thoroughgood, looks at the different career options open to those with accountancy qualifications.
Where To Start And How Long It Takes To Become An Accountant
There are alot of ways to become an accountant, and there are multiple career paths tochoose from. It helps to discuss these first before going into details solets get to it.
Accounting hastypical career pathways and non-typical ones. On one end, we have standardways of becoming an accountant: receive accounting training and education, getan accounting internship and work experience, obtain necessary licenses and getcertified, and then enjoy your accounting career. On the other end, there arepeople who get into an accounting career by accident going outside of thetraditional pathway. They may have received their degree in a non-businessdegree and at some point got introduced toaccounting, liked it, and decided to switch. These people may not follow thestandard pathway to an accounting career, but they can be very successful asaccountants, nevertheless.
Depending onwhat you are looking for in your accounting career, you may spend from 0 to 10 years on training andeducation. You can start working as a bookkeeper without any formaleducation. You can also aim to obtain a college degree in accounting which may take you about 4-5 years. Finally, if youdecide to receive an advanced degree to become an accounting professor and workin academia doing research and teaching, you are looking at 4-5 years to getyour Bachelors or Masters degree and another 5 years to obtain your PhD.
For thetypical accounting career, the following steps will generally be expected:
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