accounting certificate

accounting certificate

The Importance of Earning an Accounting Certificate

1. Advantages of an Accounting Certificate

The fourth benefit to earning an accounting certificate is preparing to take and pass the Certified Public Account Exam. The completion of an accounting certificate program can be credited as qualified work experience by the Board of Accountancy in the Uniform Accountancy Act. The fifth benefit of earning an accounting certificate is a pay raise or promotion. Once you pass the certificate accounting exam and complete the certificate coursework, your employer may give you that fifty cent to two dollar raise you were hoping for in order to “frontload” the bookkeeping job and avoid looking like a job hopper. Furthermore, after you have earned your accounting certificate, you may consider applying for bookkeeping jobs with better pay.

Another benefit of earning an accounting certificate is the cost factor. You will obtain an important and highly valued accounting certificate in less time and for less cost. An increase in job opportunities is a third benefit of earning an accounting certificate. Once you earn your accounting certificate, you may apply for employment at the various governmental and not-for-profit agencies in your locale that are hiring for bookkeeping jobs and get hired. Bookkeeping jobs have the option of telecommuting and flextime.

Earning an accounting certificate offers several benefits. The first benefit is an increase in knowledge and teaching. In an accounting certificate program, you will increase your knowledge of debits and credits; learn about the periodicity assumption; obtain a better understanding of deferred taxes; understand the basic accounting equation; and obtain a better understanding of accruals and deferrals. An accounting or bookkeeping certificate program also teaches accounts payable and accounts receivable procedures. Furthermore, the certificate program teaches how to set up the books and record financial transactions with adjusting entries, create financial statements, and close the books.

2. Requirements for Obtaining an Accounting Certificate

Before obtaining your accounting certificate, you also must perform at least one year with providing at least 500 hours of service each year under the supervision of a licensed accounting or a CPA. Each accounting certificate owner must pass a national examination, orthographic board, with an individual time for the specified periods. Community service experience is required to obtain an accounting certificate. In order to meet this requirement and apply your service, you also must pay the appropriate fees and properly prepare and submit your application.

In order to begin on your path to earning your accounting certificate, the first thing you need to do is complete your accounting education. Typically, this means attending a 2 or 4-year college that offers accounting programs. If you have an accounting certificate application in progress, you are required to have at least 150 semester units of college. First, you must complete a minimum of 51 semester hours of business coursework consisting of 36 semester hours of upper-level university or college work to include the subjects of accounting and business-related courses. At least one-half of the coursework must be lecture courses. We will go over this more in-depth further along in the article.

In order to obtain your accounting certificate, there are numerous different requirements and steps you need to take. Here, we will outline what it is you need to do to obtain your accounting certificate:

3. Top Accounting Certificate Programs

With significant experience and some time working in the industry, you can be what every other company is looking for when they post their employment availability for accountants as an accounting professional that will not need to be immediately trained. Earning an accounting certificate can lead you to the world of business school employment. The Accounting Programs Guide has created a top list which blends academic rigor, a supportive environment and hands-on experience. It is a top, state-of-the-art choice for an accounting certificate program. With courses that provide an in-depth knowledge of accounting and its application across the board, students learn how to be strategic business partners with what is considered the traditional bottom line role of accounting. A diverse group of faculty, students and courses help give students a global mindset and learn how to operate within the most diverse and intricate world of business while studying in this accounting certificate program.

If you are like others and have been in the same position, it may interest you to know that for many people finding a job in college and taking on the dual role of student and full-time employee does not go very well together. Balancing the requirements of your job and an accounting certificate program is often easy compared to most other college majors. Becoming a CPA is even easier now since you no longer have to meet any specific requirements to be eligible to sit for the exam. Though you still need that 150 credit hours and your accounting BA, earning an accounting certificate in a specialty area is a sure way to find full-time employment after graduation.

4. Career Opportunities with an Accounting Certificate

Accounting is not only suited for individuals who are analytical and mathematical, but it’s also suitable diversity is worthwhile for those wanting to be successful. An accounting certificate in combination with the educational requirement for accounting practicums in the many professional areas includes public accounting, governmental and not-for-profit accounting, auditing, forensic accounting, industry accounting, international accounting, accounting information systems, non-profit accounting for organizations, and taxation. Even today, CPAs continue to be recognized and hired for their value, leadership, and business management.

“Accounting continues to be one of the most stable career choices in today’s economy.” This is attributed to the Bureau of Labor Statistics projecting that employment in accounting is expected to grow 10% from 2016 to 2026, faster than the average job. With the rapid changes within the business environment due to global commerce, concerns over financial services and corporate learnings, there is no wonder why individuals want to gain the knowledge and skills in accounting. With an accounting certificate, career opportunities are located in the government, for-profit, non-profit, education, and healthcare organizations. Business students often pair the accounting certificate with a concentration in another area such as marketing, management, or finance. An added bonus is the finding that workers in the financial industry earn an average of 40% more than other careers of similar educational requirements.

5. Steps to Earn an Accounting Certificate

What is accounting? It is the process of gathering, recording, and analyzing the financial information of a business. Managers, tax companies, shareholders, and regulators look for people who have this skill set; they need individuals who can report financial events on a timely basis. As a certified accountant, you are able to offer these skills, making you very attractive to employers. Many colleges have a degree in finance and accounting; it is very important to know the school you attend is accredited through your state. To begin your career, becoming an accountant is very useful in other areas of business, marketing, taxes, administration, economics, and especially business operations. As an accountant, you can work in many different environments. To begin in some cases, individuals starting out as certified public accountants, public accountants, certified management accountants, government accountants, business education, finance and accounting topics, which lets them work for publicly traded companies.

Are you interested in becoming a certified public accountant? Employers are looking to hire individuals who have skills in accounting or a degree in the field of accounting. Many applicants are studying and taking the desired courses to receive their certified public accountant license. You will need the skills and knowledge in the areas of finance, business administration, and accounting to solve any problems that you may encounter and to handle large amounts of money. To be able to gain these skills, you would need to be certified and hold a bachelors or masters degree in accounting or in the business field. Many individuals are beginning their accounting careers by pursuing a career goal of being employed as a bookkeeper, enrolling in an accounting certificate course. There are jobs that are specifically provided for individuals who have an accounting certificate. Because their job may also involve working with accounting software such as Sage 5 Accounting, AccPac, Quickbooks, and ERP systems like Oracle and SAP.