Benefits of Accounting Courses

Accounting courses open up a wide range of career opportunities into the future.

This is because accountants have a set of skills that are in very high demand. This is true for the big four accounting firms, as well as a huge number of specialist accounting firms that provide their clients with the precise information and advice that they need to make effective business decision into the future.

This post will provide you with information about accounting and give you an insight about how to get the most out of your accounting study experience at college or university.

Accounting Career Opportunities

Accounting is the science of preparing financial information that all types of organizations can use to keep track of business actions and create reports that can inform better decision making.

Accountants are responsible for planning expenditure, creating budgets, generating reports and helping business leaders to make the best decisions for a company.

Common areas of specialization within accounting include:

• Financial Accounting
• Management Accounting
• Taxation Accounting
• Forensic Accounting
• Business Administration
• Auditing

Skills that Accountants Need

Accountants are usually highly organized and process driven people with strong attention to detail. Importantly, accountants need to have well-developed communication skills, including speaking, listening, presenting and writing. This is because accountant will often be required to report important information to external clients, internal stakeholders and business leaders.

Having an interest in business and organizational processes is necessary for accountants as they will spend much of their time following procedures that are determined by the firm. They will also benefit from an understanding of legal issues, taxation law.

About Studying Accounting

Students who study accounting courses are often some of the hardest working students at university undergraduate courses. This is because they need to work through complex problems and present reports in a range of formats that take into consideration legal and business issues.

Accounting courses often start with units that give a background to accounting fundamentals, as well as business basics and legal frameworks. This may involve units in the areas of business statistics, informational systems, economics, management and law. These units will give accountants the broad perspective required for successful decision in real world scenarios.

Students will then study units that look at specific areas of accounting, including accounting theory, taxation, auditing, financial accounting and management accounting.

In second year, students will often choose to major in either financial accounting or management accounting. This will most likely determine the type of accountant they will be in the future, so this is an important distinction for students to consider.

While accounting courses can be challenging for students, most universities offer a large range of support services that enable students to succeed in their courses. Keep in mind, the university has a strong interest in graduating as many students as possible, so even if there is an area that seems overwhelming at first, students should continue to try hard in order to reach their goal of graduating.

Most colleges and universities have strong business clubs that allow students studying accounting to become involved in activities that can have a social or professional element. In the modern world environment it is important to see university clubs as an opportunity to build professional relationships that can continue well after the university course has been completed.

By staying in touch with professional networks such as Linkedin, accounting students can give themselves every chance for greater career success.

Common Accounting Qualifications

The official qualification for accountants will vary between countries so it is important to research what is offered in the country where you are deciding to study and live.

In the United Kingdom, graduates may study for a Bachelor of Arts (Accounting) BA, or a Bacehelor of Science (Accounting BSc). In the United States, the common qualification is known as the Bachelors of Accountancy (BAcy or BAcc). In Australia, it is often known as the Bachelor of Commerce (BCom).

The length of study for an accounting degree is usually three years in Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand and Singapore. For the USA, it typically takes four years to gain an accounting qualification. This is due to the fact that the American college system often requires students to take general subject that relate to a broad range of subject areas in first year.

Further Study Requirements for Accountants

For most accountants, it will be important to continue study following undergraduate work. Some choose to study a post graduate course, such as a Master of Professional Accounting.

Industry associations also play a vital role for accountants. For examples, to be a certified accountant, graduate will need to complete further studies by groups such as the Chartered Accountants (CA) body, or study to become of Certified Practicing Accountant (CPA).

Students from international backgrounds may also benefit from Professional Year (PY) programs, that help accountant to develop their professional communication skills for the workplace. These types of courses can also help students as they apply for permanent residency (in countries such as Australia).

Internships for Accounting Graduates

Accountants often start their professional career with an internship. An internship is an opportunity for a recently graduated accountant to gain valuable work experience in a professional environment.

Internship programs vary in length, but typically last for a period of 4 – 12 weeks of unpaid employment. For interns that perform strongly during this period, there may be the opportunity to become employed either part-time of full-time by the company that offers the internship.

Accounting Interns need to be proactive during this period, as this is a prime opportunity to gain the skills such as communication, teamwork and time management. These skills cab be discussed during subsequent job interviews.

Accounting Software

Modern workplaces are run with advanced software programs that make daily work function smoothly. It is therefore important that students interested in a career in accounting are familiar with common accounting systems. In fact, some accountants say they use up to thirty different types of software in the weekly accounting role.

Some of the common accounting software options can be seen via this link: https://softwareconnect.com/categories/

Despite the huge range of choice that accounting forms use, there is a simple point that students need to keep in mind. The point is that no accounting software can replace the knowledge of accounting processes that real people hold. In other word, you need to know the accounting principles before you can use the software correctly.

Find out more about studying accounting in other countries here.

Find resources that can help you be a successful student here.