Careers in Accounting

List of Top 4 Careers in Accounting

Below are some of the top accounting career options that you can opt for –

1. Finance & Accounts Manager
2. Statutory Auditor
3. Taxation Manager/Expert
4. Certified Public Accountant (CPA)

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Source: Careers in Accounting (wallstreetmojo.com)

Accounting Career Overview

Accounting is a field where a person is involved in handling the finances of an organization. It involves a wide range of activities like bookkeeping basicsBookkeeping BasicsBookkeeping is the day to day recording of financial transactions such as purchases, sales, receipts, and payments, and it is the first step in the accounting process. It can be prepared in two ways: single-entry and double-entry; however, the double-entry approach is more widely used and recognized in most countries.read more, financial analysis, financial reportingFinancial ReportingFinancial Reporting is the process of disclosing all the relevant financial information of a business for a particular accounting period. These reports are used by the stakeholders (investors, creditors/ bankers, public, regulatory agencies, and government) to make investing and other relevant decisions. read more, auditing, statutory obligations, major financial decisions, etc. The kind of work a person does depends on the years of expertise and various degrees and certifications a person has acquired. There are plenty of career options available in accounting, and qualified candidates are always in demand. Accounting is paid well, and you will need a bachelor’s degree to enter the field. However, demand increases significantly if the candidate acquires a Certified Public Accountant – CPA certificationCPA CertificationThe CPA Exam assesses accounting professionals not just on their financial knowledge, but also on their ability to review and seek out key abilities.read more or other relevant certifications.

Career #1 – Finance & Accounts Manager

Finance & Accounts Manager – Job Description

Responsibilities	Responsible for finance and accounting function for preparation of profit & loss and balance sheet.
Designation	Finance & Accounting Manager
Actual Role	Actively manage the daily operations of the payables and receivables and take calls on vendor/customer management for deals and negotiations.
Job Statistics	The Bureau of Labour Statistics of US displays that job growth for accounting managers is 10% from 2016-26, which is faster than average
Top Companies	USAA, Capital One Financial, One deck Capital, JP Morgan Chase, Ernst & Young, Deloitte & Touche, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), KPMG, Bank of New York Mellon, Automatic Data Processing Inc, etc.
Salary	The base salary for an accounting manager ranges from $91,835 to $116,722
Demand & Supply	There will always be a good demand for this role as monthly book closing and reporting is widely accepted practice now.
Education Requirement	Bachelor’s degree in finance for entry-level jobs and CPA/CFA/ MBA for further progression.
Recommended Courses	Bachelor’s degree in finance for entry-level jobs and CPA/CFA/ MBA for further progression
Positives	Extensive knowledge of the different accounting functions and exposure to statutory and internal accounting requirements
Negatives	In the long run, the accounting function becomes a repetitive task

Career #2 – Statutory Auditor

Statutory Auditor – Job Description

Responsibilities	Responsible for examining the prepared books of accounts to identify any malpractices, fraud, or deviation from set standards
Designation	Auditor/ Senior Auditor/ Audit Manager
Actual Role	Ensure the transaction is accounted as per accounting laws by doing sample checks of journals, ledgers, and any other item from the Profit & Loss and Balance Sheet. Auditors also do the physical check of assets reported in the books to ensure that they actually exist
Top Companies	Ernst & Young, Deloitte & Touche, KPMG, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), RSM, Grant Thorton, BDO, CBIZ, BKD, and other audit firms
Job Statistics	The Bureau of Labour Statistics of US displays that job growth for auditors is 10% from 2016-26, which is faster than average
Salary	The base salary for an entry-level auditor is $ 61K which increases with years of experience and career progression
Demand & Supply	There will always be a good demand for this role statutory audits has become compulsory for almost all the organizations
Education Requirement	Bachelor’s degree in finance for entry-level jobs and CPA for further progression
Recommended Courses	Bachelor’s degree in finance for entry-level jobs and CPA for further progression
Positives	Extensive Knowledge of the various accounting functions and exposure to statutory and internal audit requirements
Negatives	It involves a lot of traveling as the auditors have to visit the client site for the understanding of financial statements and physical verification of assets

Career #3 – Taxation Manager/Expert

Taxation Manager/Expert – Job Description

Responsibilities	Responsible for direct and indirect tax-related matters, tax filing, and tax audit facilitation with auditors.
Designation	Taxation Manager.
Actual Role	In most countries, the tax is payable quarterly, and there are so many details like fixed assets, debtors list, creditors list, and other information is to be provided while filing tax returns, all these are taken care of by the tax team.
Job Statistics	The tax professionals are very high in demand and the average salary is $105K for a tax manager.
Top Companies	Ernst & Young, Deloitte & Touche, KPMG, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), RSM, Grant Thorton, BDO, CBIZ, BKD, other audit firms, and every organization needs at least a team for audit facilitation.
Salary	The base salary for entry-level tax personnel is $ 71K which increases with years of experience and career progression.
Demand & Supply	There will always be a good demand for this role as the tax requirements are becoming complex day by day.
Education Requirement	Bachelor’s degree in finance for entry-level jobs and CPA/CFA/MBA for further progression.
Recommended Courses	Bachelor’s degree in finance for entry-level jobs and CPA/CFA/MBA for further progression.
Positives	Extensive knowledge of the various tax functions and exposure to statutory and internal tax requirements.
Negatives	Tax rules are subject to constant change and it becomes difficult to keep pace with changes.

Career #4 – Certified Public Accountant (CPA)

Certified Public Accountant (CPA) – Job Description

Responsibilities	Responsible for providing accounting, taxation, and various other financial services like insurance, investment, tax planning, a mortgage to the general public and small businesses.
Designation	Certifies Public Accountant (CPA)
Actual Role	CPAs provide all kinds of financial services, consulting, and guidance to the general public. From tax filing to tax planning, bookkeeping, accounts preparation, and audit of small businesses are some of the activities a CPA does.
Job Statistics	There are around 700K licenses CPAs in practice USA and they are highly in demand.
Top Companies	A CPA practices on their own at their place of choice.
Salary	CPA charges fees for their services and they make good money in practice per the report of Bureau of Labour statistics of US.
Demand & Supply	There will always be a good demand for licensed CPAs due to the increasing financial integrity imposed by governments and organizations.
Education Requirement	CPA – Certified Public Accountant degree.
Recommended Courses	CPA – Certified Public Accountant degree.
Positives	Over a period, a CPA becomes an expert in their field of practice and the money also starts flowing handsomely. Practicing as a CPA also gives a lot of satisfaction compared to a job as it like setting up a sole proprietorship.
Negatives	A licensed CPA has to keep themselves always updated with frequent changes in the accounting and taxation field.

These are some of the major areas where the person with accounting knowledge can work. However, various other fields like Forensic accountingForensic AccountingForensic accounting employs a mix of accounting, auditing, and investigative acumen by recording accounting documents, preparing reports, and performing financial analysis for use in legal proceedings. Thus, it provides an accounting analysis from a litigation perspective.read more, Valuation, Arbitration, Data Science, etc., are emerging and have a great scope for a person with an accounting background. With recent development globally, IFRS being implemented worldwide, there will be many changes the way books are prepared. Accountants will be in great demand to keep pace with changes and ensure that financial requirements are met.

Conclusion

The accounting job role is a great career field. This is not a new field, and the origin can be traced back to as early as 2000 to 3300 BC, and this field is still evolving. Accounting is not only about preparing financial statements and presenting it but about maintaining financial integrity and entrusting public faith in public limited companies. Incidents like Enron, Tyco, Worldcom, etc. posed a threat to accounting practices, and it gave berth to SOXSOXThe Sarbanes-Oxley Act (Sox) of 2002 was enacted by the US Federal Law for increased corporate governance, strengthening the financial and capital markets at its core and boost the confidence of general users of financial reporting information and protect investors from scandals like that of Enron, WorldCom, and Tyco.read more compliance. Accountants are viewed in very high regard as they are considered the watchdog of an economy, and they are the people who can keep a tab on money laundering and black money. So accounting career also imposes a moral obligation for accountants towards society and country.

Recommended Articles

This has been a guide to Accounting Careers. Here we provide the list of top 4 job roles in accounting, including Finance & Accounts Manager, Statutory Auditor, Taxation Manager/Expert, and Certified Public Accountant. You may also have a look at these finance career articles below –

• Top Careers in Bookkeeping
• Financial Accounting Career Options
• Career Options in Commerce
• Corporate Finance Jobs