Studying In the Field Accounting is one of the most necessary yet sorely misunderstood professions in today's job market. The popular image, of course-parodied on stage and in film and television-is of a nebbish-y number-cruncher obsessed with accuracy down to the minutest detail, hunched over a desk, his bow-tie tied just-so and his round little glasses fogged over with the heat of all the mental effort. The truth, however, could not be more different, and the reality of today's accounting field is this: In a world grown ever more complex, and in a business environment in which companies have multiple arms spread out across oceans and over continents, the work of accountants is more exciting-and more challenging-than it ever has been before. The time, indeed, is right to seriously considering this growing field.
Far from the number-crunching that most people assume to be the sole work of accountants, this is in fact a surprisingly multi-faceted field: Put simply, "Accounting is the study of how businesses track their income and assets over time. Accountants engage in a wide variety of activities besides preparing financial statements and recording business transactions including computing costs and efficiency gains from new technologies, participating in strategies for mergers and acquisitions, quality management, developing and using information systems to track financial performance, tax strategy and health care benefits management" (www.careers-in-accounting.com). So despite assumption, accounting is actually a rather dynamic field with plenty of facets for you to consider.
And this means that studying in it is just as exciting and interesting as working in it. Students considering going into accounting, or studying it in graduate school, should obviously have a solid background in mathematics. But that's not all: They should also have a good business mind, an ability to pay attention to detail and a desire to work in an environment in which they will be challenged more than they may have thought they would be.
In general, graduate students in accounting pursue their M.B.A. But within that field, there are many specifics areas on which a student may focus. At Penn State's Smeal College of Business, for example, accounting graduate students may choose to focus on one of the following seven areas: "Corporate Financial Analysis and Planning, Corporate Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Investment Management and Portfolio, Analysis, Product and Market Development, Supply Chain Management [or] Strategic Leadership" (www.smeal.psu.edu). And this, of course, is not an exhaustive list of all the possibilities. Indeed, there are as many areas of accounting to pursue as there are aspects of the business world. And because of the nature of the work, many schools offer graduate degrees at night for working professionals who wish to earn a degree without sacrificing their professional responsibilities.
Job Opportunities In the Field As has been noted, there are many areas of accounting that graduate students may pursue upon graduation. "To begin your career, you are most likely to start at a public accounting firm such as Ernst & Young or PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Most people do not make partner at public accounting firms but the experience and training can be excellent. From there, many move on to careers" in other, more specific areas of the field, including auditing, budget analysis, financial accounting, management and tax accounting and more careers in accounting. And whatever specific aspect of accounting you wish to pursue, it can be done either alone as an independent CPA, with a large company or accounting firm or even in the public sector.
And the financial rewards, while variable, can be tremendous. The "median annual wage and salary earnings of accountants and auditors were $50,770 in May 2004. The middle half of the occupation earned between $39,890 and $66,900. The top 10 percent of accountants and auditors earned more than $88,610, and the bottom 10 percent earned less than $32,320" (www.bls.gov). And then there are those accountants who choose to pursue high levels of corporate success, some of whom become C.F.O.'s and make significantly more money than even these numbers suggest. It all depends upon your goals. Whatever they are, this is a far richer, far more rewarding field than most people imagine. And pursuing a graduate degree in it will likely satisfy you in professional and intellectual ways you never imagined.
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