Finance and Economics Vs Finance and Accounting

freeze4real

Hello guys I'm at cross roads.
I study finance and economics at maynooth university, currently going into 2nd year.

I was comparing the modules between accounting vs economics and I noticed that they were different, and yes that's because their completely different courses.

My question is which is better ?

My dad wants me to be in the accounting side of things as i can work for myself and for a company but I'm into stock markets etc which is done in the finance part of accounting.



If I were to complete my degree in Economics and I did a masters in Accounting, how would you consider my accountancy package against a fully fledged accountant.

too many questions,



Opinions wanted


mods if you can do this please add this to the economics form as well.
thanks

SBWife

To become a "fully fledged" accountant you would have to take professional exams regardless of what your degree is in.

So my advise, do what you enjoy more now, if it makes sense do an accountancy qualification when you finish (either with or without a Masters). You might not get as many exemptions as you would with an undergraduate accounting degree but given you need 3 years experience to become an accountant these exemptions won't lead you to qualify any faster.

Dellboy2007

You might not be able to do an Accounting Masters as for most Masters on offer you have to already be exempt from the CAP 1 level of exams. You probably wouldn't have all of CAP 1, depending on the subjects you did.

http://www.charteredaccountants.ie/Students/Student-Services/Courses/Exemptions/

That doesn't mean you can't continue on to do Accounting, of course you can, just thought i'd let you know of that now.

freeze4real

Dellboy2007 wrote: »

You might not be able to do an Accounting Masters as for most Masters on offer you have to already be exempt from the CAP 1 level of exams. You probably wouldn't have all of CAP 1, depending on the subjects you did.

http://www.charteredaccountants.ie/Students/Student-Services/Courses/Exemptions/

That doesn't mean you can't continue on to do Accounting, of course you can, just thought i'd let you know of that now.

As of now i am already exempted from CAP1 exams.

I got an email from the accountancy department in maynooth stating that.

Dellboy2007

Already exempt from CAP1 and you're only going into second year? Fair enough

freeze4real

Dellboy2007 wrote: »

Already exempt from CAP1 and you're only going into second year? Fair enough

It seems I'm not exempted, not yet.

The email states that by passing all 4 accountancy modules I'm on target for full CAP1 exemptions.

So according to the replies so far even though i get a full accountancy degree plus my masters I will still still some exams.

In that case there's no point as if i were to do finance and economics i will still be in the same boat.

Can any tell me the benefits of doing accounting over economics ?

smcgiff

freeze4real wrote: »

Can any tell me the benefits of doing accounting over economics ?

Yeah - your course director in maynooth.

LightningBolt

I'd advise you stick Finance and Economics. The quantitative side will stand to you in the years to come. Accounting can be easily gotten into if you've done Ec and Fi. It's a hell of a lot more difficult the other way around.

Your Dad shouldn't have any bearing on what you want to do. I'm working with a fair few people who've all done masters in finance and they're not fans of accounting, they just happened to come into the jobs market at a time when finance jobs were scarce so they opted for accountancy as they were generally the only industry hiring in relatively large numbers.

If you look at a lot of desirable graduate finance/economics jobs most will state that they look for graduates from a quantitative background, if you go the accountancy route at undergrad it may go against you for certain jobs.

In short, do the course you like most and have an interest in. It will make doing well in your undergrad exams that bit easier.

Username2011

I did economics and finance in college and then due to the nature of the finance sector in Ireland, decided to go down the accountancy route.
So I joined one of the accountancy firms for a 3.5 year contract.

Coming out of economics and finance, I had no exemptions whatsoever.
This means you have to sit all 5 CAP 1 in year 1 (law, tax, management accounting, financial accounting and finance). (overall pass rate is app. 60%ish)

In year 2 you have to sit 4 CAP2s (Strategic finanance and management accounting, financial reporting, tax and audit) (overall pass rate in 2009 was 35%).

In year 3 you have to sit your final exams - spread over 3 days.

So by choosing to do economics you are making it harder for yourself if you do get into accountancy as you have an extra year of exams to do

However, if I had it back again I would still do the same route.
Because:

I loved year 3 & 4 of my course, I found them very interesting.

Accountancy in the big 4 is for 80% of people a stepping stone. Not very many people stay on in their contract after their 3.5 years. I certainly won't be. But coming out I will have a "double qualification" per sey - a degree in economics and finance while also qualifying as a professional accountant. This is an advantage if you want to go into the finance side of things as you are able to look at things from a finance perspective, but also from an accounts perspective.

You still have to complete 3.5 years regardless of whether you are CAP1 exempt or not.

Lightning Bolt is correct. Do what you're interested in. After all, you want a career you're interested in don't you?

If you were to do economics in college and a masters in accounting, it's similar. As you have a double advantage in that economics and accounting are both on your cv. If this is the case, you will only have to do one set of exams - the final set, and you will only have a 3 year contract. As well, masters people start off on higher salaries.
Masters people typically find the professional exams harder as they do not have prior experience (with CAP1 or CAP2) but for me this would be the ideal scenario if you were able to do a masters.In fact, if you go for the BIG 4 interviews in your final year of college and get accepted, they could pay for your masters. they're very keen on sending students to masters.

Thats just a big 4 perspective anyway, focusing more on exam side of things.
Good luck

freeze4real

thanks for the reply guys.

I will stick to finance and economics and i will try to get a 1.1 and I will take it from there.