Have you ever asked the question What is an Accounting Degree? Read here to learn the answer.
Accounting is one of the most respected fields of business today. This refers to the process of measuring and disclosing vital financial information aimed at guiding managers, investors and tax authorities in making decisions particularly with regards to budget planning and spending. Although the emphasis is more on computational and calculation skills, the scope of this degree these days has become broader.
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An accounting degree may be right for you if you like to work with numbers and solve computations, you are detailed oriented and are comfortable with solving problems and analyzing information.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment for accounting graduates to increase by 16 percent moving through 2016. A high demand is foreseen in the tax and health care fields.
Skills being taught to students taking up accounting degrees are also becoming broader. This is in response to the globalization of business organizations. Apart from technical skills, they are trained as well in developing their communication, interpersonal, legal, sales and foreign language skills.
If this is where your interest lies, you can pursue an Associate or Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting. This is a four-year degree being offered by many colleges and universities as well as business schools worldwide today. Students have an option to pursue it the traditional way or online by enrolling in a distance learning program. The online program is most popular among working professionals who don’t want to commute and attend classes on campus.
While you can choose to enroll in a top ranking business school, it does not always follow that being in a low ranking school will make one less competitive after graduation. What’s important is you obtain your accounting from an accredited school to ensure you’re getting quality college education.
An Associate’s Degree in accounting can prepare you for a four-year and advanced degrees. Courses covered are business law, financial and managerial accounting, business communication, principles of information systems, macro and micro economics, elementary statistics and business calculus.
A Bachelor’s Degree in accounting, on the other hand, may cover courses such as business finance, intermediate financial, managerial and tax accounting, audit, human resource management, intermediate statistics, marketing, business communication, economics, advanced accounting, financial reporting, governmental accounting and analysis. Specializations are also offered by many schools and these include accounting and information systems, banking, financial investigation, government and non-profit accounting, private sector accounting and taxation.
As an accounting graduate, one has a choice to become a certified public accountant (CPA) or a certified management accountant (CMA). This title, however, can only be achieved after passing an accreditation exam.
Graduates of an accounting degree can work in different organizations whether in the public, private or non-profit sectors. You can be assured of a very rewarding job that offers security and high compensation. If you’d like to advance in your accounting career, there’s always an opportunity to do so by pursuing advanced studies. There are employers today that prefer to hire applicants who have completed a master’s degree in accounting or a master’s degree in business administration (MBA) with focus on accounting.
Now that you have the answer to the question What is an Accounting Degree? you are ready to get started pursuing one!
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