Pros And Cons Of An Accounting Career –Everything You Need To Know

A career in accounting is ideally one of the paths to a fulfilled professional life. But just like any other career, an accounting career does have its own downsides.

Beyond the common belief that accountants are generally well-paid professionals, there are other underlying benefits of an accounting career. While it’s important to get attracted to this career path because of its underlying benefits, it’s equally essential to figure out whether you can cope with the downsides of an accounting career.

To help you make an informed decision with respect to the choice of accounting, we’d walk you through the pros and cons of an accounting career. Hopefully, after reading this post, you’d be able to decide whether the pros of an accounting career far outweigh the cons for your kind of person.

What Are the Pros of a Career in Accounting?

There’s the Potential of Earning Big

While $45,760 was reported as the average yearly salary for all workers in 2021, The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) estimated the average annual salary of accountants at $77,250 in that same year. This clearly indicates that accounting is a career path with the potential of earning big.

High salary potential is definitely not the only significant thing to consider about a career path, but of course, it is one of the crucial pointers to a fulfilling career. Interestingly, the potential of earning big in the field of accounting rubs off on the position of financial managers who, according to BLS, earn far above $100,000 in average annual salary.

Generally, accountants are well-remunerated professionals, and if earning reasonably is your chief consideration for career choice, you’ll likely not go wrong with an accounting career.

It Allows You to Operate as an Entrepreneur

Not everyone fancies the idea of working for others all through their professional life. In fact, most people, at some point, crave the excitement that comes with being one’s own boss. Luckily, accounting is one of the careers where you can nurse high hopes of becoming an entrepreneur.

Whether their intent is to remain strictly in the line of accounting or transition to a path that’s slightly similar, an accountant with sufficient capital should be able to set up a business and run it efficiently. The reason is that accountancy exposes you to a vast knowledge of financial and business management in general.

If you’re really passionate about setting up a business venture of yours sometime in the future, a career in accounting is likely an ideal fit for you. With such a career, chances are that you’ll not only develop the capacity for organizing human and non-human resources, but also the acumen to coordinate profitable business activities.

A Career in Accounting Stimulates You to Help Others Professionally

Some people derive pleasure in helping others demystify the various complex aspects of commercial ventures. Taxation is, for instance, a complex aspect where a large-scale business may require the service of a tax officer or a related expert. Similarly, financial management –including accurate tracking of credit and debit records –is a crucial aspect that should be placed in the hands of an expert.

Without any doubt, a career in accounting stimulates you to offer professional (financial management) services that can help businesses overcome complex financial situations, or easily fill loopholes that might otherwise pose financial difficulty.

It Is a Relevant Career Path

With the fast pace at which the modern job market evolves, there’s no denying that relevance is a key consideration for choosing a career path. Inasmuch as businesses operate here and others, accounting is bound to remain a relevant profession.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the period of 2020-2030 is projected to experience 96,000 new accounting jobs. Similarly, accounting jobs are projected to experience a 7% growth rate within the stated 10-year period. While this clearly hints that there are promising job prospects for auditors, accountants and other financial experts, it’s also a pointer to the fact that accounting is a relevant career path.

Some professions are highly likely to be eroded by the fast-paced development of the modern job market, but the good news is that accounting isn’t one of such professions.

It’s a Career Path with Specific Job Roles

Accounting is one of the fields where you’re pretty certain about your potential workplace and the roles that would be required of you. The reason for this certainty is that an accounting degree equips you with definite skills, rather than some (general) abilities that eventually expose you to indefinite career paths.

While it’s very true that accountants come in different types, the interesting fact we can’t deny is that these professionals generally handle finances. Unlike counterparts studying languages, accounting students tend to have a clear view of where they’ll work as well as the specific roles employers will require of them.

It Allows You the Opportunity to Work in Your Preferred Industry

Accountants are financial experts whose services could be needed by employers in just any industry. This is why it’s pretty easy for an accountant to choose the industry where they want to work.

Any businesses –inclusive of public and private enterprises –could need the service of an accountant. With regard to the choice of workplace, the accountant isn’t restricted to any specific industry or business type.

If you’re keenly interested in a particular industry and would like to take up a financial management job in that industry, pursuing an accounting degree could be worthwhile.

How about the Cons of a Career in Accounting?

Your Accounting Role Could Be Stressful

An accounting job could expose you to a great deal of stress, though depending on your company, your specific role and your work scale. You’ll likely have to deal with hectic workplace demands especially if your company entirely entrusts you with the management of its finances.

There’s no denying that some accounting positions come with heavy workloads, but it’s up to you to figure out how much stress you can cope with before taking up a hectic job. If your accounting role in an organization appears extremely crucial, there are chances that you’d have to deal with a lot pressure which might, in turn, pose stress to you.

If you tend to wilt very easily while under pressure, you might not be able to deal with the stress that accompanies some accounting positions.

You Could (Occasionally) Get Extremely Busy at Work

Accounting is one of the professions with peculiar “busy” periods characterized by huge workloads. This is in addition to the fact that your accounting role is more than likely a standard 9-5 job.

For tax accountants and certain others, the “busy” season could get so hectic that they just have to work for prolonged hours even on weekends. In all of this, the good news is that you’re not likely to get extremely busy at all times. Once the “busy” season is over, your work schedule and work hours would reduce.

There’s a High Likelihood of Getting Bored

Frankly, accounting is one profession that can earn you a fulfilled professional life, but along the path to this, you could get bored with some day-to-day tasks involving protracted calculations and evaluations.

Compared to artistic professions, accounting isn’t a typically glamorous profession. You’ll likely get bored occasionally while handling some of the tasks you’re already accustomed to. Some of your accounting tasks might begin to seem so tedious that you’d want to take a long time off work. Before deciding to tread an accounting path, it’s up to you to consider whether you can cope with the complex calculations, evaluations or other time-consuming (analytical) tasks that accountants deal with.

Continuing Education Is Usually Necessary for Career Progression

More often than not, you’ll have heard one or two things about the essence of professional accounting certifications, such as CMA, CPA, and CFA. The reason why people pursue those certifications is simple –continuing education may be highly required for you to meet the up-to-date requirements of top accounting positions.

With a basic accounting degree under your belt, you’d be considered eligible for foundational accounting jobs. But if you’re very keen to move up the career ladder as an accountant, you definitely need to arm yourself with professional credentials. It’s to this end that an accountant might just have to commit time to continue education.

FAQs

Is a Career in Accounting Worth It?

You really have to consider several factors before you can ascertain if an accounting career is ideal for you. Some of the factors include your personality and the kind of future you want for yourself. Generally, however, accounting is a great career for somebody who is not only keen on financial management but also wants to help others –including small and large businesses –handle complex finances.

Are There High-Paying Accounting Jobs?

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), financial managers had an estimated average annual salary of $131,710 in 2021. This BLS-provided stat clearly hints that accounting (or financial management in general) is one of the professions with highly remunerated experts.

Can Somebody without an Accounting Degree Become an Accountant?

Yes, it is possible for somebody without an accounting degree to become an accountant. But in some cases, holding a degree in any related discipline such as economics, taxation, banking/finance, etc. comes as an added advantage for individuals applying for accounting jobs.

In addition, you’d be required to have acquired a professional certification –such as Chartered Financial Accountant (CFA), Certified Management Accountant (CMA), Certified Public Accountant (CPA), etc. –before you can qualify for certain positions in the field of accounting.

Conclusion

Now that we’ve substantially walked you through the pros and cons of an accounting career, you should be able to tell if you’re really fit for a career in accounting.

Notwithstanding the opinion you have about the ingredients that prepare one for success in the field of accounting, our verdict is that anybody with an innate ability for financial management already has a high likelihood of succeeding as an accountant. Besides sound accounting education and the requisite professional certification, a strong knack for financial management is definitely one of the recipes for working as an accountant.

Reference:

https://www.rasmussen.edu/degrees/business/blog/must-know-pros-cons-accounting-career/