Accounting degree

[Anonymous]

If you or your dc have gotten one, how difficult was it? Dd is switching her major for it (her choice after research and talking to adviser) thinking career prospects will be strong, but she worries about the difficulty level. She is an excellent student all-around but not a Math star, just works hard. And did you/your dc have any real passion for accounting, or did you/they go into it for the employment opportunities?

[Anonymous]

I work closely with a lot of accountants at my company. By and large, the best ones are detail oriented and hard working, but were not necessarily math or accounting majors in college. You don't actually need to do a lot of math, Excel and accounting software does the calculations for you. You need to have a good sense of numbers and systems more than being a math whiz.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I work closely with a lot of accountants at my company. By and large, the best ones are detail oriented and hard working, but were not necessarily math or accounting majors in college. You don't actually need to do a lot of math, Excel and accounting software does the calculations for you. You need to have a good sense of numbers and systems more than being a math whiz.

She is definitely detail-oriented and hard working. I don't think she necessarily has a good sense of the coursework at this point though. It seemed Math-heavy from what she was telling me (Calculus + two other pretty technical classes this coming term)

[Anonymous]

I graduated with an accounting degree in 2020. The hardest math class was "business calc," which was equivalent to high school precalc, but that could vary by school. In my current corporate accounting role, I rarely do anything beyond middle school math standards.

I've never met anyone "passionate about accounting" lol - but I've always enjoyed spreadsheets, analyzing data, and tracking my own personal finances.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I graduated with an accounting degree in 2020. The hardest math class was "business calc," which was equivalent to high school precalc, but that could vary by school. In my current corporate accounting role, I rarely do anything beyond middle school math standards.

I've never met anyone "passionate about accounting" lol - but I've always enjoyed spreadsheets, analyzing data, and tracking my own personal finances.

I think this is what she is taking this spring. She did very well in pre-calc, so this is reassuring actually! And she is very into personal finance. Do you enjoy your job now? How easy was it to find one after college.

[Anonymous]

I'm passionate about accounting!!

I work with nonprofits, and love being able to organize financial data to facilitate decision making for mission-driven organizations. I get to use my superpower for good! My staff is mostly young people and I love mentoring/teaching them. Most didn't get accounting degrees and are now pursuing it more formally.

You need a mind for organizing things, and being able to sort and analyze data - to see the "story" it tells. You don't need to know or love complicated math - adding/subtracting/dividing/multiplying - understanding percentages.

There's a pretty big shortage of accountants out there. AI is being introduced into the software used for accounting, but it's making having an analytical mind and ability to interpret the data even more important - because it can quickly become "garbage in garbage out". Oddly enough, when the world goes haywire (like in the pandemic) the need for accounting just increases - I've always had very good job security. There are a lot of deadlines - so you have to manage to those and protect your work/life balance in the time between deadlines - but that's very doable.

[Anonymous]

I was an accounting major and I think it's a good path. It's not terribly difficult. I was not a math star, but I liked math. Took normal track, geometry sophomore year of HS and Algebra 2/Trig junior year. No need for calculus as an accounting major.
From my college, it was easy to get a job with the big 4. I would not bother with a degree from a place that doesn't have good placement there.

[Anonymous]

Math is about putting in the practice. Anyone can improve their math by doing a lot of calculations. She can look into fund accounting, we pay well, you can hit 100k within 3 years if graduating.

[Anonymous]

My kid just graduated with an Accounting degree and has passed 2 of the 4 CPA exam sections. They were originally a Finance major but got convinced that having a CPA would significantly increase job opportunities. They've got a super outgoing personality and folks who know my kid are surprised about the Accounting path, but honestly I think this was a smart move.

So no real passion for accounting, more so for money 😁. Oh and they were just a so-so student in HS but once in college and with a plan they were motivated and classes seemed to be easy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid just graduated with an Accounting degree and has passed 2 of the 4 CPA exam sections. They were originally a Finance major but got convinced that having a CPA would significantly increase job opportunities. They've got a super outgoing personality and folks who know my kid are surprised about the Accounting path, but honestly I think this was a smart move.

So no real passion for accounting, more so for money 😁. Oh and they were just a so-so student in HS but once in college and with a plan they were motivated and classes seemed to be easy.

This is all really good to hear! My dd definitely wants to make money and that is a motivator for her, that and stability. Maybe the issue is the major feels extremely hard on paper, and the adviser made it seem like it would be very hard as well. It is a very highly ranked program apparently, which we did not know because she was set on an entirely different major. Hopefully the material all makes sense to her and is not as daunting once she is actually taking the courses. I am hoping she will have a good experience like your ds.

[Anonymous]

The job needs depend on what function you are doing. Auditing requires one set of skills, corporate reporting another. If you work in accounting policy, that is almost like being a lawyer in the sense that it’s a lot of theory and deeply understanding the accounting standards, history and the various interpretations.

And for what it’s worth, I am good at math and got As all through calculus. But I need a calculator for basic addition and subtraction. I don’t think math is the skill needed. It’s more critical thinking and application with a good dose of integrity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you or your dc have gotten one, how difficult was it? Dd is switching her major for it (her choice after research and talking to adviser) thinking career prospects will be strong, but she worries about the difficulty level. She is an excellent student all-around but not a Math star, just works hard. And did you/your dc have any real passion for accounting, or did you/they go into it for the employment opportunities?

best degree for sure.

Accounting is a great field for jobs.

Not everyone loves being a CPA

I am a forensic accountant. Love it.

Many companies have good job prospects ie all companies need payroll, taxes etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you or your dc have gotten one, how difficult was it? Dd is switching her major for it (her choice after research and talking to adviser) thinking career prospects will be strong, but she worries about the difficulty level. She is an excellent student all-around but not a Math star, just works hard. And did you/your dc have any real passion for accounting, or did you/they go into it for the employment opportunities?

Would your daughter be frustrated when answers that are perfectly reasonable but not exactly what was asked for are marked wrong?

Would she be irritated if the answer to a “why” question was “because this is the way it is done?”

Accounting is about consistency over creativity or brilliance. It is far better to be consistent, even consistently wrong (in some cases), than to approach each task as a question of judgment.

Also, accounting, particularly at CPA firms, tends to have a ton of workaholics. The firms hire a ton of people in, work them like crazy, and the few that are both good and stick it out can become partners and make pretty serious money but most burn out or quit.

The job market for accounting is good and CPAs in particular are in short supply. (Just search for “CPA shortage.”)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you or your dc have gotten one, how difficult was it? Dd is switching her major for it (her choice after research and talking to adviser) thinking career prospects will be strong, but she worries about the difficulty level. She is an excellent student all-around but not a Math star, just works hard. And did you/your dc have any real passion for accounting, or did you/they go into it for the employment opportunities?

Would your daughter be frustrated when answers that are perfectly reasonable but not exactly what was asked for are marked wrong?

Would she be irritated if the answer to a “why” question was “because this is the way it is done?”

Accounting is about consistency over creativity or brilliance. It is far better to be consistent, even consistently wrong (in some cases), than to approach each task as a question of judgment.

Also, accounting, particularly at CPA firms, tends to have a ton of workaholics. The firms hire a ton of people in, work them like crazy, and the few that are both good and stick it out can become partners and make pretty serious money but most burn out or quit.

The job market for accounting is good and CPAs in particular are in short supply. (Just search for “CPA shortage.”)

Wow - the bolded - which accountant hurt you?

OP - there are many types of accounting and as your DD digs into things, she may want to evaluate them all. Not all accountants need a CPA to be successful, but certain accountants absolutely do. And she can specialize in a type of industry to make herself more marketable as well (construction, manufacturing, nonprofits, governments, corporations, entrepreneurs, tax/audit - all need different expertise). It's very easy to work for yourself as an accountant too - taking on several smaller organizations who don't need full time attention is a great market for good paying work once she has some experience under her belt.

[Anonymous]

I went back to school after having a degree in another field and took the courses for a CPA at community college. There is no formal math in accounting. You do not need to know trig or calc as people are saying here. Obviously these posters don't know what accounting. You have to have a good sense of numbers and data and be an analytical thinker but that is not formal math. In a finance program you might need to take calc, but not in accounting.