by John P Cummings

Created on: January 11, 2007   Last Updated: April 17, 2007

If you're interested in a career in business, then regardless of your current job education or background, you should strongly consider becoming a Certified Public Accountant (CPA in the United States) or Chartered Accountant (CA in Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, etc.). Becoming a CPA (in order to make things more succinct, I'll simply use CPA) will give you the business tools, connections, competitive pay, and validation to have a successful career in business. Various factors have increased the need for competent accountants, and salaries in the industry make it a worthwhile career choice.

Upon graduating from graduating from college, students with an accounting degree are actively recruited, especially by the "Big 4" Accounting Firms (PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ernst & Young, KPMG, and Deloitte & Touche). These international firms represent the largest players in the public accounting profession. Working for one of these firms will provide not only top notch training and resources, but a lifetime worth of connections from both internal colleagues and external clients. In addition, the benefit of being able to list one of these firms on your resume will have advantages for your entire career.

Most individuals work for a public accounting firm for two to five years in order to satisfy the experience requirement (which varies by state but is typically two years) to be a licensed CPA. Upon leaving a public accounting firm, numerous career options are available, and many individuals take positions as Accounting Managers, Controllers, and middle management positions in private industry. These positions tend to be very well compensated and are in strong demand throughout the United States and worldwide.

Compensation is another factor you should take into account should you decide to become a CPA. As the demand has increased for CPA's, starting salaries have also risen and remained competitive with other industries. After a couple of years salaries tend to rise even further, both in public accounting and in private industry. Salaries can easily reach into the six figures after ten years in the profession.

Becoming a CPA will also give you the validation to set yourself apart from others in the business world. The certification provides you with a well accepted foundation of knowledge that others will know you posses. Because the CPA distinction is well known and respected in the business community, there will be widespread acceptance of your abilities, training, and educational background.

There are a few downsides though, but these tend to be inherent in any professional service industry. In the first few years, the hours are long, especially during busy season or tax season. A new employee can get lost in a firm as large as one of the "Big 4", and it can be tough to grasp the complicated internal political process. But these are issues that could arise at any large corporation or service related profession and shouldn't dissuade a person from pursuing a CPA license.

If you're considering a career in business, in just about any capacity, it would behoove you to at least consider becoming a CPA or CA. The networking possibilities, salary, and entry into the business world are all strong factors why an individual would consider becoming a CPA. There's not a whole lot of downside, so if the business world is on your horizon, consider the CPA route.

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