Accounting Careers Possible with an Accounting Degree

Deciding Your Future in Accounting

Alex P
So you're here because you got your degree, either online or through an actual class. After completing the course though, you face a new challenge: what are you going to do now? Well, fortunately, a background in accounting means you have a solid, respectable foundation to a wide variety of careers, many of which pay extremely well. If you don't know the vast amount of jobs that accounting offers, you've come to the right place. Here are some great future careers that you can pursue to put your accounting degree to work for you:

Internal Auditing

Depending on the business, an internal auditor can have a broad range of duties. However, they all follow the similar pattern, which is to analyze a business, find the problems and suggest solutions. As an internal auditor, you may find yourself reviewing common business transactions, describing pertinent risks, creating procedures for solutions, and report on the final analysis. Pay rates generally range from $20 to $40 an hour depending on how long you've stayed with your firm.

Bookkeeper

Becoming a bookkeeper is a good idea for an entry-level job, not if you have been in the accounting profession for a few years. Bookkeepers generally do only what their name implies: bookkeeping. They record the transactions of a business, such as sales, purchases, income, and salary payments. Average pay ranges from $12 to $17, making it a better job for younger, just-out-of-college students.

Certified Public Accountant (CPA)

To become a CPA, you must take a state test consisting of four parts which will test your knowledge of accounting. As a CPA, you have a broad range of duties depending on your employer, including but not limited to income tax, forensic accounting (fraud), corporate finance, information technology, and tax preparation. Pay rates for a CPA range about $50,000 to $80,000 between one and over twenty years of service.

General Ledger Accountant

General ledger accountants often determine balances, like those of inventory and trial, prepare for internal management reports, and review the sales journal, among many other roles. To learn more about the duties of a general ledger accountant, you can find a nearly exhaustive list at Kevin Hagen's article here.

Treasury Analyst

Treasury analysts, like almost all accounting jobs, have a range of duties, including the maintenance of bank relationships, stock ledger, reporting communication, and cash management. Median annual salaries for treasury analysts range from $45,000 to $65,000.

Comptroller (Controller)

This is a more senior position and requires several years of experience, and often, history with the firm. The controller supervises accounting and financial reporting, and specializes on monitoring internal controls of the business. Pay rates range from $60,000 to $85,000 for these experience workers.

Don't Have Your Accounting Degree Yet? Get One Online

Getting your accounting degree online can be much more fitting to your needs. You can access your material twenty four hours, seven days a week. You are more free to contact your teacher whenever he or she is busy, just by having their e-mail. You can set appointments to certain classes because online classes are practically tailored to fit your busy schedule. And, don't think that since you're getting your degree online, it's less valuable than getting on at a college campus. In fact, over 75% of schools in the U.S. offer some kind of online degree program, showing that it's truly just as respectable. Then again, don't listen to the myth that they're cheaper; most of the time, you end up paying just as much for an online class, including textbooks and other materials, as you would by attending an actual college campus class. Need more reasons to apply for your MBA or accounting degree online? Click here to learn more about an online degree.

Sources:
Why Do Students Like Online Learning." World Wide Learn.
"Accountant." Wikipedia.
"Types of Accounting Jobs?." Yahoo Answers.
"What is a Treasury Analyst?." Accounting Jobs.

Published by Alex P

.  View profile

8 Comments

Post a Comment
  • Matthew2/17/2010

    You can find even more information on a career in accounting here:
    http://www.accountingcoach.com/careers/

  • july11/11/2009

    The history of mergers and acquisitions is filled with the best laid plans that - oops - left out one tiny detail: the sales force. A new article in the Quarterly online newsletter tackles the issue of sales force integration,this site is amazing and i like to visit this site...t is a phrase or word common to employees of a company but not outsiders. Like functional jargon, it can be helpful shorthand and provide a sense of belonging.There are plenty of jobs available for people who are ready to work. In the field of writing and editing also there are a number of options people can adopt. Due to increased means of publications and marketing, people can find a bright career in the editing field. A writer can start writing from the very moment he wishes to make career in the field of writing and editing.

  • khaja kaleem uddin6/30/2009

    well as always said " accounted keeps the pace" this is an well and nice written article here I would like to enlighten upon the accounting site which i like the most. that is http://www.AccountManagementCrossing.com for job search, it has major news publication about accounting jobs. AccountManagementCrossing Aggregates Jobs from Every Online and Printed Source We Can Find. There are tens of thousands of employer and job sites out there. Our goal is nothing less than to show you every job from every source. and also other jobs of the same field like account manager jobs, account management jobs, account executive jobs, account manager jobs, uk sales account manager jobs, recruitment account manager jobs, and account manager job description can be viewed. it also shows shows you jobs from every single employer career page, job website, association website, newspaper classified ad and recruiter site we can find in the world.

  • MNC4/29/2009

    If you aren't going in to public accounting, or don't plan on taking the CPA exam you should join the IMA. This is for more managerial accounting positions such as Financial management and the like.

  • Alex Stanton4/15/2009

    Duly noted.
    Join the AICPA!
    :) Thanks for the comments.

  • Jon Campos4/14/2009

    Good article. Make sure those CPAs remember to join the AICPA! (That's where I work)

  • Dan Reveal4/14/2009

    Such an informative article on accounting careers! Thanks for this good work.

  • Siew Cheng Hoe4/14/2009

    Actually base salary is not an important for senior level. Those holding CFO or FC positions want stock option.

Displaying Comments

To comment, please sign in to your Yahoo! account, or sign up for a new account.