” All labor that uplift humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence” Martin Luther King Jr.
When it comes to the question as to what career is right for you, no one can make that decision and answer that question except you. You know what your likes and dislikes are and what talents you can bring to the workplace. I know you have heard that old saying that “if you choose work centered around something you love doing then it won’t seem like work at all”. That statement is most likely true and I am sure that most everyone would prefer to be in a profession where they enjoy their work. I am hoping that you will be fortunate enough to have a career you enjoy and that brings personal satisfaction and fulfillment.
I believe that many of us can say that as we graduated high school and started the process of career selection, we may have chosen to enter a career blindly — not knowing all that we needed to know before embarking on the post-secondary education and training necessary for employment. That’s why I want to take our posts for the remainder of 2017 and explore different career options and provide information to young people so they can be as knowledgeable as possible regarding opportunities awaiting them.
It is not my intentions to tell you what is or is not right for you in terms of a career path. My purpose is to provide you with the information so that you can make an informed decision. It is my belief that if you have a dream of achieving a goal or even working in a particular profession , then it is up to you to pursue that dream and make it a reality for yourself. With hard work and perseverance you can achieve anything you put your mind to.
There are so many options available out there when it comes to career paths. Some can be more appealing then others in terms of job growth, future employment outlook, and salary potential. Some careers are currently experiencing a lack of trained and skilled workers to satisfy demand. As a result, some companies are having to import workers from other countries to fulfill that demand. So we have decided to initially look at some of those career path where the demand for trained and skilled workers is high.
With that been said, we are going to look at the area of business and finance first. The first career path we are going to explore is that of accounting. One may find it surprising that the profession of accounting is categorized as a career path that has a high demand for trained workers. But in actuality, the employment future for anyone choosing to enter this profession, looks very bright. According to data provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the job growth rate for this profession is steady and consistent.
Accounting
So what is accounting? In a nutshell, accounting is the process of keeping financial records, performing internal audits, and analyzing financial information for a business, organization or an individual. It also involves providing advise on tax matters. Within the accounting field there are professional as well as para-professional career paths one can choose. The professional career path is that of an Accountant, which is sometimes referred to as an Auditor. The para-professional career paths in accounting are as follows:
- Accounting Assistant
- Accounting Clerk
- Account Payable Clerk
- Account Receivable Clerk
- Bookkeeper
- Payroll Clerk
Let’s explore each career path!
Accountant
In 2014, there were over 1.3 million accountants in the United States. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects that between the years of 2014 and 2024 the job growth rate for accountants will be around 11%. The reason for the growth is due to business growth (as the economy grows), globalization of businesses, merger of businesses , and the increase complexities of the tax laws. Large and small businesses, profit and non-profit organizations, charitable organizations as well as individuals utilize the services of an accountant — which makes it a profession that will consistently need trained and skilled individuals. As an accountant, you can expect your duties to include the following:
- preparing and examining financial records and assuring that those records are accurate and conform to laws and regulations;
- assessing the financial operation of a company and making recommendations to help it run more efficiently;
- handling matters related to tax preparation.
The amount of education you will need to become an accountant will be more extensive than what is required for jobs identified in the para-professional career path. Most companies will require that those individuals they hire as accountants have at least a 4-year college degree. That degree can be in accounting or a closely related field such as business administration with a concentration in accounting.
Once obtaining the college degree, most individuals will also become licensed as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). A CPA license is necessary for any accountant who will be filing reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission on behalf of the clients they are working with. The CPA licensing test is administered through each state’s Board of Accountancy. One of the requirements to obtain a CPA license is that an individual complete at least 150 semester hours of education.
Being an accountant can open up numerous avenues of employment. Individuals will have the option of working for large corporations, small businesses, medical facilities, insurance companies, financial institutions, federal government, state government, charitable organizations, religious organization, etc. They may also choose to work as entrepreneurs themselves by opening their own accounting business and working on a contractual bases.
In addition there are specializations within the accounting profession. Those specializations include the following:
- Forensic Accounting – an area of accounting where you will investigate fraud or embezzlement and analyze financial information for legal proceeding.
- Government Accounting – using accounting skills to record, classify, and summarize the revenues and expenditures of a government entity.
- Management Accounting – assisting company managers in making day-to-day decisions about the operations of the company by preparing the necessary financial and statistical reports.
The salary for accountants can make it an attractive career path for many. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median income for an accountant in 2015 was $67,190.
Para-Professional Positions In Accounting
If you are interested in pursuing a career path in accounting but not interested in investing the time and money to train as an actual accountant, you may want to consider the following career paths:
Accounting Assistant/Accounting Clerk
This is an entry level position where your main responsibility will be to serve in a supporting role to an Accountant. Some of the duties may include maintaining records of invoices, handling payment and purchase orders, producing income statements, performing routine bookkeeping, creating and maintaining databases, maintaining files, answering the phone, and handling customer inquiries.
Training to become an Accounting Assistant/Accounting Clerk typically requires a certificate or associate degree from a community college. Depending on the requirement of the employing company, one may be able to become hired in this position with a high school diploma (with high school level accounting and bookkeeping courses ) and then receive on-the-job training.
Data provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has the 2015 median salary for an Accounting Assistant/Accounting Clerk as $37,250.
Account Payable Clerk
An Account Payable Clerk is someone who is responsible for paying the bills of a company. They receive, open and log invoices of a company and assure that a company is not being overcharged for services.
The educational requirement to become an Account Payable Clerk can be either a high school diploma/GED or a 2-year associate degree. Which level of education you will need to get employment in this field will depend on the size and need of the employing company. To look attractive as a possible candidate for hire with only a high school diploma, one needs to make sure they take accounting and bookkeeping courses at the high school level.
The median salary for an Account Payable Clerk in 2016 was $38,388.
Account Receivable Clerk
As an Account Receivable Clerk you will verify, classify and record all incoming payments for a company. You prepare bank deposits for payments received via cash, check, money order, credit card and debit card. You may also make contacts regarding past due bills and also reconcile any discrepancies regarding bills.
The educational level ones needs to be hired as an Account Receivable Clerk is at least an associate degree in accounting. It also helps to have good math, organization and communication skills as well as an attention to details.
The median salary for an Account Receivable Clerk in 2016 was $37,026.
Payroll Clerk
A Payroll Clerk is responsible for making sure a company pay their employees the accurate amount and pay them on time. They deal with matters related to time entry, yearly salaries, hourly wages, sick days, vacation and overtime pay. They also assure correct withholding tax deductions, and see that a person’s method of receiving their pay is implemented correctly (check or direct deposit).
To be hired as a Payroll Clerks usually does not require any formal education beyond a high school diploma. Most of their training is provided on-the-job.
The 2015 median salary of a Payroll Clerk , according to BLS, was $37,040.
Bookkeeper
A Bookkeeper is someone who is responsible for receiving and recording all the cash, check and voucher transaction for a company. They may use software, spreadsheets and online databases to post financial transactions. They may also be required to produce financial reports, balance sheets and income statements.
The training requirement to become a Bookkeeper is that of a high school diploma with accounting and bookkeeping courses at the high school level. Some employers may require you to obtain an associate degree or certificate in accounting. You will also need skills in mathematics and computer technology.
Some may be under the impression that a Bookkeeper and an Accountant are the same. Please note that their roles are very different. A Bookkeeper’s role is to record a company’s day to day transactions via software or in a ledger. Whereas, an Accountant role is to take the data entered and then perform analysis and generate reports that can be used to determine business trends, business growth, etc.
The median salary for Bookkeepers in 2015 was $37,250.
Employment in the para-professional fields of accounting can be found in the same businesses and industries that hire Accountants.
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