Should I Get an Accounting Degree? And Why I’m Thinking I Might Pull The Trigger on This in August or September of This Year
| Related Posts |
|---|
So, should I get an accounting degree? My reason for writing this blog post is that I have been flirting with the idea of getting my CPA license for almost 2 years now, and aside from reading some accounting and tax books, and making money for myself in the field of wealth management along that same span of time, I really have not directly done a lot to take steps towards this path. There are financial and time constraints involved that are giving me pause for doing this, as well as the fact that maybe I’ll be over-extending myself if I do (running an online blog, maintaining friendships, going for an accounting degree using a university that grades you based on essentially speed, and working 60 hours per week at a banking job is no joke, your whole life is working and its stressful). However, I think its something that I should do anyway, as usually when something is in the back of my mind for this long of a span of time, it means it’s something I should do. There are so many benefits that come from getting the BA in accounting, which include giving me the ability to take the CPA exam, qualifying me for accounting jobs, bulletproofing me against job loss to a certain degree were something to happen to my career in wealth management, and so on. And so, in today’s blog post, I’ll walk you through my thoughts and opinions on why I might pull the trigger on applying for this accounting degree in August, and why I’m actually kind of excited.
Other topics we’ll be discussing on this blog include:
Finance
Accounting
My Thoughts on College
Different Career Fields
Different Skills
Speaking
Writing
Negotiating
Sales
Tons of different business skills
How acquiring new skills will make you dangerous
And much more, read on or subscribe to our blog for additional details and information.
Should I Get An Accounting Degree, And Why Going for My CPA License Is Really Seductive To Me
So, I think yes I should get an accounting degree, and I think that if you are considering going for an accounting degree, that you should most definitely go for it. There are a few reasons for this, which are:
- You get the ability to put the letters CPA next to your name – I cannot stress how powerful this is, a BA in Accounting leads to the ability to take the CPA exam (if you’re smart that is) which leads to you becoming a CPA with Accounting work experience. You can do tax, audit, financial planning, financial advising, it opens up the entire field of finance and accounting fully for you (Financial Analyst, Taxation, Financial Planning and Compliance positions anyone?) which can absolutely accelerate your career in a super quick fashion. When you have a CPA license, there is a certain degree of respect that is owed to you in any field, and even a CPA going into something like tech, or real estate, or internet marketing, will be highly well respected before they even get in the door.
- It gives you professionalism and Job Security – Having a CPA license is one of the fastest ways to boost your resume, add another certification on there (or two) like the CFA,CFP or Enrolled Agent Designation, and you are well on your way to having a fantastic degree in finance. Get fired from a job due to layoffs? Sick of the 9 to 5 rat race and want to start your own tax business, the CPA license makes it far more likely that you can accomplish these things, and that you can hit those higher salary marks in your field, like the 75, 90 or $100,000 per year salary marks…not too shabby at all.
The Steps for How to Become a CPA
So, those are some of the amazing perks of having a CPA license, lets look at how to become a CPA (from where I’m at college wise right now)
- First off, I have a BA in Finance, that’s a pretty good start, I’m learning accounting schools like that you have something of a background in the area and that you know your stuff. This also gets me to 126 credit hours currently.
- I need 36 credit hours in accounting and I am 100% good to go on the education portion of the CPA license. And I just need to take 8 more accounting classes before I can sit for the CPA exam. Even if I just go get a generalized BA in Accounting, and take either 3 more BA or MA classes, then I can fulfill the education requirement, both with the 150 credit hour requirement, and the Accounting credits portion of the goal.
- I then need to take and pass all 4 parts of the CPA exam.
- From there, I need to get a job in accounting working under a CPA for one year straight, then apply for CPA licensing and voila, I’m a CPA. From here, I may or may not pivot back into wealth management and just use the credential, or use the less restrictive accounting field to pursue outside business interests, like an SEO company, private tutoring services, becoming an adjunct professor, and even filing tax returns for individuals for profit.
Benefits of Becoming a CPA in Finance and Wealth Management
Plain and simple, it makes your resume really stand out, and it makes you a candidate for certain technical positions within the field of wealth management, mix this with a Series 7 and 66 license, and with the 9/10 licenses, and you are a dangerous candidate to move into compliance should you choose to do so. The one benefit of compliance positions in wealth management is that there is more security, and there is less catch 22’s than in the situation of being in an FA or sales assistant role. You are on defense for the bank instead of on offense, and this lends you some certain degree of security with this being the case. AML and other types of positions also become available and you become a stellar candidate, and almost over-qualified, for any $50,000 to $75,000 per year position, it moves you up a tax bracket into the $75,000 per year+ club.
Final Thoughts on Should I Get an Accounting Degree, And Why I’m Saying Heck Yes to This
So, heck yeah I’d like to have that kind of security. CPA’s are EXTREMELY well respected in just about any field and I think it is probably one of the most important things that I will ever do in my entire life to go out and get this license. Whether it leads me to becoming an Accountant, or moving into banking compliance from the sales side, or just gives me more resume security, or leads me to using my creative entrepreneurial side a little bit more, I definitely do not think that I will regret doing this and in fact just the opposite, that I may regret not doing it. What do you think about getting an Accounting Degree? Because I say sign me up for all of the above! Be sure to read on or subscribe to our blog for additional details and information.
Cheers!
*Inflation Hedging.com
Sources:
https://www.bankrate.com/banking/cds/cd-rates/
https://money.cnn.com/data/markets/
Disclaimer: The opinions and documentation contained within this article and on this blog are the sole property of inflationhedging.com and are not to be copyrighted or reproduced in any manner, else legal action within the rights of the United States legal code could be use to obtain recompense. All articles and blog posts are the sole opinions of the writers of the blog, and are not necessarily in line with what exactly will work for you, you should consult a CPA, Tax Professional, or Financial Professional to determine what exact financial needs are in line with your interests. Also, from time to time, certain links on this website will be used to generate affiliate commissions, in order to support the health and growth of our website, health and business.
[…] your belt, and from any school it is very well respected in business. Since I am striving to be a CPA candidate, have tutored others through business school with their degree, and am a licensed securities […]