Accounting degree

[Anonymous]

I have a junior who is thinking about majoring in accounting in college. I don't think he has a passion for accounting or anything. He just see it as a potential for a stable career. He's very good at math/science, not so much in the Humanities. Is there any type of program he can attend for the summer that would give him an idea of what a career in accounting might entail?

Thanks

[Anonymous]

I don't have info on a summer program, but just wanted to share that I have an accounting major (junior in college), who was similar to your son in high school. Very good in math/science, not so much humanities. He applied to colleges as a business major, an accounting focus wasn't even on his radar, his intention was finance or economics. But he took the required accounting class of all business majors and found he had a real knack for it, kept going, and is now working towards being a CPA.

If no luck with a summer program, I would think that if he applies to a general business program and takes that first intro to accounting class, that will tell him one way or the other.

[Anonymous]

get an internship!!

[Anonymous]

Here are a couple...

https://precollege.nd.edu/courses/accounting/
https://www.nysscpa.org/nextgen/high-school-students/coap/co-ap-locations#sthash.tghM6b9m.dpbs

But also agree with PP, he'll get exposed to all the business paths in the introductory classes. I went into college thinking I'd be an accounting major because I also was good at math + had taken an accounting class in HS. Turned out I thought the accounting classes were boring but I really liked my consumer behavior and statistics classes, changed my concentration to marketing with a focus on marketing research. And now have worked in that field for 25 years.

[Anonymous]

A couple other options to get a sense of it would be... 1) to take a CC class in accounting. 2) Find someone you know who works in the field who could talk with him about the career and potentially do a job shadowing for a couple days. This is going to be a lot more likely for an inexperienced HS student than an internship.

[Anonymous]

It's a very transportable degree - every major company needs a CFO, who gets paid a sh#t-ton of money. You can use the degree to get into Wall Street. You can pivot into sales. MBB consulting. Go to law school after getting a CPA and you'll be very well paid.

Or you can just do boring audit/tax/compliance, but there's limited upside to that career.

In short, it's a degree that allows for very flexible outcomes. But your kid should really commit to getting the CPA.

Definitely have your kid take a community college course while in HS. Unfortunately, it will be a slog and more than likely turn him off from the career.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's a very transportable degree - every major company needs a CFO, who gets paid a sh#t-ton of money. You can use the degree to get into Wall Street. You can pivot into sales. MBB consulting. Go to law school after getting a CPA and you'll be very well paid.

Or you can just do boring audit/tax/compliance, but there's limited upside to that career.

In short, it's a degree that allows for very flexible outcomes. But your kid should really commit to getting the CPA.

Definitely have your kid take a community college course while in HS. Unfortunately, it will be a slog and more than likely turn him off from the career.

+ 1 . Definitely can lead to so many different paths after a few years experience. I’m not in the business field, but my daughter is an accounting major. I’ve heard it’s usually a good market for accountants as they’re always needed so getting that first job is not so difficult. After a few years (of hard work I hear), you can branch out into so many different areas.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here are a couple...

https://precollege.nd.edu/courses/accounting/
https://www.nysscpa.org/nextgen/high-school-students/coap/co-ap-locations#sthash.tghM6b9m.dpbs

But also agree with PP, he'll get exposed to all the business paths in the introductory classes. I went into college thinking I'd be an accounting major because I also was good at math + had taken an accounting class in HS. Turned out I thought the accounting classes were boring but I really liked my consumer behavior and statistics classes, changed my concentration to marketing with a focus on marketing research. And now have worked in that field for 25 years.

Agree. First few semesters in college you are getting a taste of all the business courses.

[Anonymous]

My mom is a cpa- tough job and boring but she always has a job.

[Anonymous]

WSJ recently had an article about Accountants leaving the profession.

You should take a read and have your son take a read.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/accounting-quit-job-security-675fc28f

[Anonymous]

My husband is a partner in an accounting firm. I went on the audit side and ended up being a Director of risk management.

[Anonymous]

Keep in mind that accountants have many possible job opportunities. Forensic accounting is actually very interesting. Almost like a detective

[Anonymous]

np here. I know people who call themselves an accountant without having an accounting degree. Is that wrong or odd? It must be they have the experience needed for the work they are doing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:np here. I know people who call themselves an accountant without having an accounting degree. Is that wrong or odd? It must be they have the experience needed for the work they are doing.

I mean, if you are an AP or AR billing person as example, you may call yourself an accountant or say you work in the accounting department. You don't need an accounting degree for those jobs.

Someone mentioned CFO. There are actually a fair number of CFOs that don't have accounting degrees. The Controller almost always has a CPA, and many controllers get promoted to CFO. However, there are many CFOs coming from Ibanking or other finance jobs that do not have accounting degrees.

[Anonymous]

I think your child should get an ordinary teen summer job, and talk to and pay attention to the person who does the books.