Public vs Private

I am currently working in internal audit for a private fortune 500 company and have learned quite a bit about the layout of a major business but...I feel like I am limiting myself as far as experience and perspective throughout different industries. With that said, I would suggest looking public first (big 4 is always a good place to look) and if you discover an industry that intrigues you to go private. The big 4 essentially have offices in every major city. Sorry TJ, don't mean to take over your blog and any input would be appreciated as well.

Hello, i go to a vocational school where i take bussineess. im a sophomore in high school and im currently taking the basics of accounting and i love it. i plan on being a forensic accountant. what college should i attend and would it be easy?

Hello TJ
recently i finished my bachelor based on accounting and finance in Bangladesh(Home country).0n 10th july i came in Australia. But my speaking is not good enough for studying purpose thats why i am not good of delivering any presentation.its my weakness.on the other hand i am good in accounting related math. i love accounting and i want to build my career in accounting sector.please tell me if i am not good in delivering presentation then it will create obstacles in my career or any study.

Hey TJ. I will be graduating with a BS in accounting next semester (SPRING 2012), and I was wondering what career paths would be available to me. I currently have a 4.0 accounting GPA and a 3.86 cumulative GPA, but I don't have any accounting work or internship experience. I'm not interested in working for a big 4 firm since I have a fiance and 10 month old son at home. I understand the long hours at a big firm have the ability to harm your personal life. With my high GPA being my only asset, is the job outlook going to be decent for me? I will also end up graduating with more than 120 credits (137). Since I am only 13 shy of the 150 needed for the CPA requirement, should I take a few random classes to fill that amount instead of going for a masters?

Writing a paper about accountants. Need to know at least three dislikes and three likes of this job.

Hello, TJ

If I want to become an accountant, then i should be majoring in accounting.
Yes, I got that. But then many UC schools (near where I live) do not offer accounting as a major. Is it okay to major in Business or Economics instead?
And how did you find yourself being an accountant when you were in college? I still don't know if I can enjoy being an accountant.
What kind of skills do you think required?

I would strongly recommend finding a degree in accounting if you want to work for an accounting firm... I believe with a Business and Economics major your significantly lowering your chances of getting an interview.

Are you good working with numbers? Do you understand debits and credits? Do you like excel spreadsheets? Do you mind staring at computer screen all day? Do you like to solve mathematical problems? Do you like doing research? These are some of the things you probably need to like if you are going to like accounting.

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge on accounting, TJ!
It was very helpful :D

I am currently in my senior year, working towards a double major in accounting and MIS. I'm interested in becoming a CPA/CISA and was wondering if you've heard of a "Systems Accountant" or anything similar to this. I can't find much info about this and I believe my ideal career is where accounting and MIS meet. I love working with computers but also want to focus on improving accounting systems, specifically, since I've invested my time and education in that area but have since found myself losing interest in the prospect of the actual career. Any info you can share about this would be great.

Also, I started out with A's and B's in accounting, but lately I've been getting a bunch of C's and only have two accounting classes left before getting my Bachelor's degree. My MIS grades are great, however, with all A's and only one B, so I've been leaning more towards that direction over accounting. How bad is it to be a C student in accounting and do you think it counts for anything that I'm good with computers? Thank you.

RE: Lost Student

University at Albany offers/has offered a masters in "Accounting Information Systems" which looks to be geared towards what you are looking for. I'm sure a search would turn up others schools with similar degrees... here is a link on
Albany's program: http://www.albany.edu/graduatebulletin/business_ms_accounting_information_systems.htm

Being good with computers is great as every accounting firm deals with a lot of different software. To name a few there is tax software, trial balance software, research software, project management software, document management software, etc. I am pretty good with computers and have become the in house software laison and manage most of the upgrades and technical support issues but we also have outside contractors who can come in for the bigger projects. It is definitely helpful to be able to demonstrate that you can handle new software easily but unless you are specifically looking for a tech support job you also need to demonstrate your knowledge in accounting furthermore. Have you looked into internships? That is one way to lessen the impact of a poor GPA.

RE: Lost Student

University at Albany offers/has offered a masters in "Accounting Information Systems" which looks to be geared towards what you are looking for. I'm sure a search would turn up others schools with similar degrees... here is a link on
Albany's program: http://www.albany.edu/graduatebulletin/business_ms_accounting_information_systems.htm

Being good with computers is great as every accounting firm deals with a lot of different software. To name a few there is tax software, trial balance software, research software, project management software, document management software, etc. I am pretty good with computers and have become the in house software laison and manage most of the upgrades and technical support issues but we also have outside contractors who can can in on bigger projects. It is definitely good to be able to demonstrate that you will be to handle new software easily but unless you are specifically looking for a tech support job you need to also demonstrate your knowledge in accounting furthermore. Have you looked into internships? That is one way to lessen the impact of a poor GPA.

Thank you for your advice, TJ! I really appreciate it. I am currently applying to internships related to both accounting and info systems and have found a few good-looking Masters programs similar to the one you provided a link to. After reading your response I realized that what I'm probably really looking for is a technology career that would especially benefit from an accounting background. I know this is probably not really your forte, but do you happen to know of any such careers? Thanks again.

Hi TJ,
thanks for the insight, I have an international Degree(Bs Accounting with 5yrs working experience in commercial banking in my country, i now reside in the USA and need to make a career switch from banking to accounting firm. i have posted my cv for job application but no response.
please any advice on what i should i do because i dont mind low pay just to get the experiece since am preparing to write cpa.

RE: Lost Student

Look into accounting software vendors. Accounting Systems need coders, database managers, consultants, etc...

Nicky
Where are you looking for jobs? Have you tried indeed.com looking for career shows?

Yes i have tried indeed.com, careerbuilders.com, financial career etc.and all i get is responses from insurance companies looking for sales rep. I am afraid bcos when i got here, my family told me to switch to healthcare if i want to get a job but i insisted that Accounting was what i love doing and dont want to make any career switch except if it becomes impossible to get a job no matter the pay. not getting any accounting response is so discouraging. thanks

Thank you, TJ! I will look into that. :)

Saya mau tanya jika kurang dr setahun bekerja di kantor akuntan tetapi ingin mengambil cuti, itu dipotong berdasarkan hari kerja (22 hari) atau 26 hari kerja?
Terima kasih.

Hey TJ, what did you use to study for the CPA exam? I am a sophomore in accounting and should I be studying it as soon as possible? I've heard people study non stop for this test.

I used Becker CPA review. I took in class courses since it would help me focus to study more. The course in general helped a lot because other than providing 1000 of practice questions they gave you up to date hints on what to expect on the test.

Is it possible to volunteer at a CPA firm? If so, what size firm do you recommend? and How should I do about contacting them (door knock, phone call or email)? And who should I try to talk to (manager, partner...).I am a recent graduate and in progress of CPA with Becker. I have taken two exams, and did not pass the first one, and now waiting for the results from the second exam. I really want to get into public accounting, but I'm lacking the experience. What do you recommend? Thank you