Accounting ,Which Route to take?

fire_man

Hi Guys,I was thinking of going back and doing Accountancy in The Autumn,I have a Computer Science degree and a business Post Grad,What is the quickest way i could become qualified and which qualification should i go for?

Slasher

Why would you want to do Accountancy?

There are literally hundreds of unemployed experienced, qualified accountants who have no chance of getting a decent job any time soon. The various accountancy institutes churn out hundreds of qualified accountants every year into an already saturated employment market.

The exams are very hard - they'll break your heart and your spirit.

The work as an accountant can be mind-crushingly boring. It can be very interesting.

Still want to do accountancy? Good luck with that.

If you want to get a job, better to stick with IT.

fire_man

I didnt realise things are as bad as that,Are you an Accountant yourself?

smcgiff

While the accountancy profession is going through a recession it is weathering it better than most. I would also suggest that accountancy offers an opportunity to branch out into a number of different careers.

Also, there'll always be room for another good <insert profession here>

As for what is best I can say I qualified with ACCA and have not regretted it, but I would suggest you look into the major bodies to see if they suit your circumstances...

ACCA
ACA
CIMA
CPA


Good luck

tenchi-fan

fire_man wrote: »

Hi Guys,I was thinking of going back and doing Accountancy in The Autumn,I have a Computer Science degree and a business Post Grad,What is the quickest way i could become qualified and which qualification should i go for?

Hi

exemptions are the way to go. see what exemptions you can get with your business post grad, and then get a trainee accounting job and do your exams part-time. It will take 3 years to get your work experience.

I wouldn't recommend going back to college full-time, although a basic bookkeeping or computerised accounts evening course or plc course could be helpful.

No one I know who worked in accounting is out of a job now. But the trainee wage is so bad it put a lot of people off. And a lot of my friends moan about their wages.. one of them's a qualified accountant with 3 years post qual exp.. €32k. Another is a second year trainee.. €14k. Although if you work in Dublin and you're qualified you can earn a lot... then again, some people work til 9pm for their brilliant salary. It's not a golden goose like people think it is but I don't know any accountants who are going hungry. Oh, and it's a good career because it's in demand in australia and canada.. nice if you want to spend some time abroad.

fire_man

I was checking the ACCA website,I should get 5 exemptions,Would i get the other 9 done within 2 years?

ianuss

fire_man wrote: »

I was checking the ACCA website,I should get 5 exemptions,Would i get the other 9 done within 2 years?

Dunno about 'would', but you definitely could. Sitting 2 exams at a time, every June and December, passing all 1st time. You'd have to do 3 exams in one of your sittings but it is possible. Be prepared to work very hard and put in long hours for 2 years though, it's doable IMO.

R0N BURGUNDY

Slasher wrote: »

Why would you want to do Accountancy?

There are literally hundreds of unemployed experienced, qualified accountants who have no chance of getting a decent job any time soon. The various accountancy institutes churn out hundreds of qualified accountants every year into an already saturated employment market.

The exams are very hard - they'll break your heart and your spirit.

The work as an accountant can be mind-crushingly boring. It can be very interesting.

Still want to do accountancy? Good luck with that.

If you want to get a job, better to stick with IT.

what he said

loveacca

Things are bad at the moment in all professions. Accountancy is a solid career, like everything else you have no guarantees of success but having an accountancy qualification is a major plus on your CV.
The exams are very tough, I am in the middle of ACCA myself and I am looking forward to finishing them off over the next few years

tenchi-fan

fire_man wrote: »

I was checking the ACCA website,I should get 5 exemptions,Would i get the other 9 done within 2 years?

5's not the max you can be exempt from, and don't forget that you're exempt from the easier exams!

9 exams over 2 years is definitely possible but you would need to study very hard and be lucky enough to pass each exam first time.
Also, you need 3 years work experience to qualify.. your wages aren't going to shoot up just because you have all your exams and 2 year's experience.

Pisco Sour

Slasher wrote: »

Why would you want to do Accountancy?

There are literally hundreds of unemployed experienced, qualified accountants who have no chance of getting a decent job any time soon. The various accountancy institutes churn out hundreds of qualified accountants every year into an already saturated employment market.

The exams are very hard - they'll break your heart and your spirit.

The work as an accountant can be mind-crushingly boring. It can be very interesting.

Still want to do accountancy? Good luck with that.

If you want to get a job, better to stick with IT.

+ 1

prinz

If only I'd started this thread a few years ago Would've saved myself a lot of bother.

fire_man

Tell me more Prinz,are you studying for the exams at the moment,would you advice to stay away from them?

smcgiff

prinz wrote: »

If only I'd started this thread a few years ago Would've saved myself a lot of bother.

What would you have done instead? In hind sight what would you have done that you would have been more successful at/enjoyed more?

Some of the comments in response to the OP are beyond lazy.

Pisco Sour

prinz wrote: »

If only I'd started this thread a few years ago Would've saved myself a lot of bother.

+1 to this aswell

loveacca

smcgiff wrote: »

What would you have done instead? In hind sight what would you have done that you would have been more successful at/enjoyed more?

Some of the comments in response to the OP are beyond lazy.

Agreed. Dont be put off by the negative comments on this thread. Accountancy is a tough career to take on but potentially very rewarding for the right individuals. Be sure accountancy is an area you have an appitude for and an interest in, these are the main things. If you dont have these then look at law, engineering, interior design, plumbing or whatever

prinz

fire_man wrote: »

Tell me more Prinz,are you studying for the exams at the moment,would you advice to stay away from them?

Yes, doing ACA, couple of CAP2 exams to do in June. Advise staying away? Not neccessarily, but definitely be under no illusions about it.

smcgiff wrote: »

What would you have done instead? In hind sight what would you have done that you would have been more successful at/enjoyed more?

As far as being 'successful', I reckon I'd be more successful financially on the dole tbh. I wasn't going into accountancy seeing it as an easy path to riches or a golden goose but I do expect to be compensated fairly, while my billing charge has gone up year on year my salary hasn't. Not to mention still being the office tea maker/photocopier/part time receptionist.

Still on crap pay, working all hours, no over time, no time in lieu, bare minimum of exam leave, having to use holidays as study leave, expected to be in work 45 odd hours per week and be on top of weekend lectures, study etc. Working to the best of your ability without even so much as a thank you, kind word or support from clients or superiors.

My life is permanently on hold. I have neither the time nor the money to enjoy it which is sad tbh for someone in their mid-twenties to say. With one or the other it might be bearable. With neither it isn't. Add to that the drain it presents to self-confidence, initiative, ambition, sense of achievement, morale etc.

Being berated and belittled by clients for following their own instructions or for things beyond my control and being expected to bite my tongue and allow it to happen, including being f'd out of it because Revenue weren't answering the phones one day. I used to have enough self-respect for myself not to put up with that kind of crap off anyone, now apparently it's 'acting professionally' to listen to it with a smile on your face.

If that's the future I'd have as an accountant I'd rather not tbh. If I had gotten that insight before I started into it I may have chosen a different path.

Slasher summed my experiences with accountancy up for me nicely in two terms 'broken spirit' and 'mind crushing'.

smcgiff

Prinz,

At least you got to meet clients! I rarely got to meet clients as we prepared the accounts for the partner and they then dealt with the client (not much actual audit work went on as we did most of the prep work) - As you can imagine it wasn't a big 4 practice.

In my early mid 20s and on £95 per week after 18 months in practice, okay that was in the 90s but I was the tea maker for over a year as I was last in. Although I enjoyed practice the money was beyond rubbish and if I stayed in it much longer the repetition would have sucked the enjoyment out of it.

The best decision I made was to jump into industry and a wide variety of prospects opened up.

I know you're probably stuck in a contract (being ACA) but put in the time now and it SHOULD be worth while.

Good luck

prinz

smcgiff wrote: »

Prinz,
At least you got to meet clients!

Rarely, and usually amounts to 'this is who to blame if something goes wrong'... 'would you make the tea/coffee'...'close the door behind you on the way out'.

smcgiff wrote: »

Although I enjoyed practice the money was beyond rubbish and if I stayed in it much longer the repetition would have sucked the enjoyment out of it.

That'd be it then.

smcgiff wrote: »

I know you're probably stuck in a contract (being ACA) but put in the time now and it SHOULD be worth while.

I will be putting in the time and effort to finish but can't see myself ever working in an accountancy focused job. It might look good on a CV but that's as far as it will go for me I think.

It would be great to be qualified once and for all but the slog of being a trainee, particularly in a small practice, should be made clear to anyone thinking of doing accountancy.

if you're in a sh1t accounting job, notwithstanding the recession and the more limited job roles it's your own fault for still being there- take responsibility for your own life.

there are plenty of decent and interesting jobs open to accoutants - areas like corporate finance, business intelligence etc.

yes it takes effort to get there but that's up to you to figure out. if you stumble along in a role complaining you have only yourself to blame.

smcgiff

Not entirely fair, Glasso, due to contract commitments and the recession, but I agree in that when out of contract (if in one) there's a large element of putting the effort into making the profession work for you.

prinz

glasso wrote: »

if you're in a sh1t accounting job, notwithstanding the recession and the more limited job roles it's your own fault for still being there- take responsibility for your own life.
there are plenty of decent and interesting jobs open to accoutants - areas like corporate finance, business intelligence etc.
yes it takes effort to get there but that's up to you to figure out. if you stumble along in a role complaining you have only yourself to blame.

All well and good for those already qualified. But this thread is about the OP starting out in accountancy and the pros and cons of the journey to become an accountant.

Yes I do accept that if you're in a contract that you need to get qualified / finish the contract.

I was addressing the general point brought up by other people in the thread that doing accountancy wasn't worth the trouble.

tenchi-fan

prinz wrote: »

All well and good for those already qualified. But this thread is about the OP starting out in accountancy and the pros and cons of the journey to become an accountant.

2-3 years of atrocious pay & the indignity of being the newbie. Trainee jobs can be extremely boring. depending on the company you can end up spending half your time filing and shredding.

I started in an accounting job as soon as I left college. I don't know if I could go back to that sort of money if I was used to a higher salary.

Villa Limerick

I am in the same situation as Fire_man. I have done IATI course and now plan on going on to study for cai in september. People in training contracts should be happy to have them as some of us cant get a sniff of them. I am quite surprised by some of you, Life is what you make it, Things always get better, glass is always half full !