Accounting Kid Advice

Background: Working at a high end hotel in a western ski town. Graduated a few months ago with a double major in accounting and finance. Working in the finance department as an AR clerk.

Problem: I really don't like what I'm doing. I'm really good at what I do, but it's really boring. I help the rest of the team out where I can. But I feel like it's mostly just data entry, not much thought goes into it...

Told the boss that I wanted to take an extended ski trip overseas, which they granted. If they hadn't I would've put in my notice and then headed out anyways. So that's awesome but I feel like I'm not learning any marketable skills to keep progressing my career.

Any accounting or finance folks out there who know what I'm talking about? I guess I'm just looking for some advice on what I should do and some work life balance tips.

AR often is just data entry work, but you've got to get experience somehow. Boring as it is, it should open doors for higher up more technical positions.

In most places in the accounting world (assume the US is the same) an accounting degree is useless unless you have CPA or CA designation. Plan on getting that as soon as you can, if you plan to keep working in accounting.

Accounting is cyclical in nature though, so it can seem repetitive & boring at times. Sitting inside in front of the computer gets old sometimes. But I live in a small mountain town, biking & flying & long evenings make summer awesome, & skiing everyday in winter makes winter awesome. I could earn 3 times as much working in the city, but then I wouldn't have skiing / biking / flying sites 5mins from my door.

X2 on what the above guy says. Maybe your employer will pay for you to get the additional credits you need or pay your fees to sit for the CPA exam, and you're getting some relevant experience for your resume, so that's a plus.

If I had close to the required number of credits in accounting, that would be my early-in-my-career goal.

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Originally Posted by jamesp

Accounting is cyclical in nature though, so it can seem repetitive & boring at times.

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I do finance/accounting stuff and this is true, I also don't have a CPA or any other certs. I'm not doing AR but it still can be very repetitive in that I have tasks that need to be done every day, week, month, quarter, and year. I think it's just the nature of the biz. Some of it is very interesting, some is very repetitive busy work in excel.

As far as work-life balance, I live in a ski town so lunch laps really help break up the monotony. I'm definitely planning on either getting my CPA or maybe switching up the career a bit. It'd be cool if a CPA could chime in here, and talk about the doors that open and the type of work you'd be doing with a CPA as opposed to just a regular finance/accounting degree.

I just think there is a ceiling of sorts (whether justified or not), that is hard to get above if you don't have a designation, ie I've never met a controller or CFO who doesn't have a designation.

Working in smaller companies negates this to an extent, but then you are limited to 1-3 person offices & likely have to work the same place for years waiting for an internal promotion.

I've worked in high-transaction volume businesses for a while now. I still do some regular journal entry type stuff (not much though). The change/variety for me comes in POS & system maintenance, new products, how they flow through different POS systems. It needs a little more problem solving, every new thing the marketing genius' come up with is different & can be challenging to make "work" in our systems.

Working in commerce (ie company accountant) is possibly more repetitive, but I really didn't like working for accounting firms. The need to have a certain amount of chargeable hours means you work way too much in reality... time sheets suck donkey balls.

Looks like you need 150 credit hours for the CPA in most states, which will likely involve a MBA in accounting since 120 is standard for a 4yr university... lots of coin to drop if you aren't 100% sure. Which I'm not, really.

Are you more interested in Accounting or Finance? I'm doing more and more finance work every year and find it fascinating and endless. Seems like you should select your path before worrying about what's next. Finance and work/life balance can go together but it's not an easy or obvious path.

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Originally Posted by JaytaeMoney

Looks like you need 150 credit hours for the CPA in most states, which will likely involve a MBA in accounting since 120 is standard for a 4yr university... lots of coin to drop if you aren't 100% sure. Which I'm not, really.

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With the increase in credit hours necessary for the CPA, there are a lot of places offering a 1-year M.Acc. degree that specifically preps you for the exam and can be done at night. If OP is still located on the Wasatch front, UofU offers a program like that.

Most MBA programs that I'm aware of don't even get you enough exposure to accounting for it to make a difference if you're 30 credit-hours short.

Agree with this...

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Most MBA programs that I'm aware of don't even get you enough exposure to accounting for it to make a difference if you're 30 credit-hours short.

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I started in AP after quitting my service job on NYE. Figured accounting was easy. That was in a ski town. 20 years later I'm still in a ski town.

I've been the CFO and Controller many times over. Ive been a hospital cost accountant. I've worked for ski resorts, breweries, hotels, and Internet start ups. I like to blend acctg, finance, & ops the most these days.

It is boring at times, other times the stress is a rush. But most of all accounting is a trade.

Every industry has one and it is more recession proof that alot of careers. Avoid being a tax accountant, who wants to work hardest from jan to April.

As someone a couple years out of school, the biggest thing is to find someplace you like working. Ive been at a couple ski resorts now. Working at the base makes getting out and skiing easy but some places want more regular office hours which can limit your ski time. Right now I can get out for 3 or 4 hours a day and no one will really notice I'm gone. I did AR for a while and it can be boring and the work load can vary alot depending on how busy the company is but for me it was a way to get a foot in the door.
Id agree with jamesp that at some point there is a ceiling you will hit where the CPA will become pretty much necessary to have but right out of school its not really needed. To me the expense of paying for the exam, dues and continuing education isn't worth it if you don't really need it for a while. Im planning on sitting for the CPA this summer but people have started asking about plans to take the CPA in some interviews Ive had.

I paid my dues with a forensic firm and now I can work from home. Make a good deal of money, make my own schedule, and get work the is interesting on the macro scale. The micro scale is not so fun.

Get your CPA and a few years experience and you can setup your own shop. Work from home, make good money, and be your own boss. You have to be driven for it to work though.

For a guy who works on the private side there's no way a CPA will pay off for him, notably if he stays in hotel accounting.

That being said, fuck an overpriced MBA program, get the credits you need through UCLA's extension accounting and finance program. 500 bucks a class online.

Accounting is about the only field where I think online programs are comparable to what you would get in a class. Save the cash and go that route.

I still think the best route would be to get an E.A. cert for tax things, then just do bookkeeping in a ski town for all the local businesses. Keeps you in ski country, consistent workload (opposed to the January to April hell), and you're your own boss. Thats easy money.

Agreed. A colleague of mine just semi-retired to an EA/Tax practice - and time for his plane.

CPA credential, aside from passing the test, requires 2 years of auditing in the u.s., or an equivalent time from the private side, 4-6 audit cycles atleast. It is worth getting. Be advised, working in a/p, a/r or other accounting functions will generally not help you reach CPA requirements for atleast 10+ years, you need to be involved with in the audit to obtain a cpa, even if your direction is tax related. If you are able to work for a cpa firm, and deal with auditing accounts, you will learn alot about the given industry you are auditing. If you are able to see multiple industries, all the better. The CPA approach through auditing is one of the best entrees into a given industry, in many cases better than starting to work in accounting in that industry. So if you want to be in hotel management, try to hook into a firm with hotel clients, if you want to be in ski resort management, etc...

good luck, you can gain tons of experience through auditing. If your bent is more tax related, that can work as well, but you do not gain the level of insight to the overall operations, so you need to be more intuitive in presenting your self.

Regardless of what you do don't let people convince you that advancement ceilings are set by advanced degrees or certifications. Ceilings, especially in ski towns where employee pools are small, are largely defined by talent and work ethic.

Ceilings in ski towns, in my experience, are usually real low, set by the lack of opportunities and the over-supply of hungry, educated talent.

Hi,

I have a BA with an accounting concentration and ended up in IT. There are a lot of ex accountants.

I was lucky to get hired at a mid size company that had just gone public after graduating. I missed the stock options, but the company grew while I was there. Accounting was a major function in the organization. The company processed money and used an instance of the accounting system to manage it's payments to partners. My function was to reconcile cash deposits to the actual cash transaction by writing Access reports.

I found I really liked the report writing and that I knew how the company tracked cash I moved to IT as a sys admin for the accounting system and started to learn to code.

Big picture, find a company you like and get a job, once in, see what you like and move to that team. An accounting degree will be a plus for any position you apply for once you have experience in that business.

Good luck, starting/low end accounting positions can be awful but you have the basics to have a rewarding career if you are smart and know what you want.

OP, not surprised that you don't like receivables processing. Same Old Shit, Different Day and you don't need an accounting degree to perform the work well.

Try to score a gig as a general accountant or cost accountant as the next step. You get a lot more exposure to how the business runs and how various transactions work their way thru the financial statements, affect loan covenants, etc.

The other way you might leverage your current gig is to get into cash management and treasury functions.

You don't need to be a CPA or CA to be a CFO or corporate controller. I've been VP-Finance, Principal Accounting Officer and CFO for 30 years of my career and didn't go the Big5 Indentured Servitude route. CEOs and Boards want their finance leaders to understand the business fundamentals and create systems to make fast, smart decisions, not worry about all the nuances of the latest ASR.

Good luck

Thanks for all the replys, I like coming back to this thread and rereading everyones advice.

I got back from Japanuary a few weeks ago and have been progressively getting more and more frustrated. It might be that I'm right at the base of the resort, see it everyday but can only ski on weekend. My boss seems to be getting more and more strict with the whole 9-5 which is eating away at me...

Just saw a night audit position open in Jackson. 7 days on - 7 days off that really sparked some interest. Does anyone have any advice in stepping backwards in a career. It doesn't sounds like the most intelligent step to take.

My goals seem to be make a respectable living while being able to ski - fish when I please or everyday. I'm not sure if this is realistic working for someone else.

could be seen as a sideways step, not necessarily backwards. Night audit whilst a bit different, is repetitive just like AR & you don't need to be qualified. You'll still be in a hotel so the opportunity to move to a 'proper' accounting position should be available in time.

Sounds like your current boss/gig is inflexible so maybe the move is a good idea. I've quit jobs for similar reasons in the past (couldn't get time off, too much working over time etc) & it hasn't affected anything really.

The benefit to working for someone else is you have 1 boss, work for yourself & its like every customer is your boss, you are bending over backwards to please them. Always chasing new clients, schmoozing etc. I like that (for me), work stays in the office. You just need to find the right job with the right balance, its gets easier once you have a few years decent experience.

bump for considering the CPA route....
I'm 35, been running a family farm for the past decade, and realize that now is the time to get my economic shit together. I have three kids to support, and need to have a work skill that will give me the flexibility and income needed for living a good life.

Accounting seems likely boring, but potentially interesting if I can move more in the direction of business consulting. I get it that there is a tradeoff in all fields of work. It seems like the positives to CPA work are good pay, steady demand, mobility, and potentially flexible schedule. These are key benefits for me.

I am looking at an online program through Colorado State University that would prepare me to sit the CPA exam in two to three years. I already have a BA degree so those units help a lot. All in all, I think the CPA route via online classes seems like a good path to follow. Anybody been there and have advice from the far side?

123455789

not sure if this thread is dead but id like to revive it if possible and hear from OP. Find myself in a similar position, graduating with my finance major in May and with the current situation my job search has been very quiet. Not sure if I should deviate from my investment banking focus and move into sales or financial advisor positions that are more common, or even just try taking any position within a company I like or in an area id want to live and allow me to partake in my hobbies. big motivator is having an enjoyable/stress-free life and paying off my student loans. sorry if im breaking some rule about posting in old threads, but then again I wouldn't give one if I could find a fuck

Hard to think of a field that is a worse match for your first criterion (enjoyable stress-free life) than banking. Also makes it hard to enjoy your hobbies, since most likely you end up in NYC. I do know some folks who made it work in LA, SF, Denver - where at least in theory you have access to decent skiing, but you'll have no time as an associate to actually partake. Maybe down the road you would, and it would help you pay off your student loans for sure, maybe buy a ski house you visit once a year. What kind of school are you graduating from and with what kind of grades?

If you enjoy finance I say fuck being a financial advisor - seems like you realize that's a sales job and not finance. There are a million real finance jobs on the spectrum between being an FA and being a banker, I don't think you need to jump from one end of the spectrum to the other.

Small biz.
Understanding money and numbers helps.

Look for local biz run by old farts ready to retire.
Hope to breathe new life into it.

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Originally Posted by old mexico

not sure if this thread is dead but id like to revive it if possible and hear from OP. Find myself in a similar position, graduating with my finance major in May and with the current situation my job search has been very quiet. Not sure if I should deviate from my investment banking focus and move into sales or financial advisor positions that are more common, or even just try taking any position within a company I like or in an area id want to live and allow me to partake in my hobbies. big motivator is having an enjoyable/stress-free life and paying off my student loans. sorry if im breaking some rule about posting in old threads, but then again I wouldn't give one if I could find a fuck

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It sounds like you probably want a corporate finance role at some big company. It's not slimy sales, it's not the iBanking pressure cooker. The path to grabbing the brass ring isn't as clear as it would be in banking, but the money is fine.

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Originally Posted by Sirshredalot

It sounds like you probably want a corporate finance role at some big company. It's not slimy sales, it's not the iBanking pressure cooker. The path to grabbing the brass ring isn't as clear as it would be in banking, but the money is fine.

Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk

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This was my first thought as well. An FP&A role at a big corporate would provide most of what the OP is looking for - solid pay and career progression, flexibility on location and not completely soul crushing (depending on company) so you could actually enjoy your life. The skills are pretty portable between industries and there's even a vague path from FP&A to corp. dev. if you feel you were just born to do M&A.

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Originally Posted by old mexico

Not sure if I should deviate from my investment banking focus and move into sales or financial advisor positions that are more common, or even just try taking any position within a company I like or in an area id want to live and allow me to partake in my hobbies. big motivator is having an enjoyable/stress-free life and paying off my student loans. sorry if im breaking some rule about posting in old threads, but then again I wouldn't give one if I could find a fuck

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Maybe things have changed in the last few years but, investment banking is the worst career choice ever for an “enjoyable/stress free life”.

Almost anything in finance or accounting is going to require you to “pay your dues” for a while before you can develop enough skill / value to get a cushy position.

I got a finance degree way back in the late 80's/early 90's and was pretty much in the same boat with regards to what I wanted (low stress/enjoyable life), so I abandoned finance and got into IT.

Not saying it will work for you... but it sure did work for me.

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Originally Posted by Core Shot

Small biz.
Understanding money and numbers helps.

Look for local biz run by old farts ready to retire.
Hope to breathe new life into it.

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This. Or a business where finance and accounting are core to the business but not the business itself, like small financial services firms. Frequently these and other small businesses find themselves dependent on finance and accounting without having a functional knowledge of either, and you’ll be godlike dispensing heady nuggets of GAAP without any effort.

Having worked as the lead of the finance and accounting functions of smaller orgs (between 40 and 130 employees) the last decade or so, the actual finance and accounting were my least favorite parts of the job, which was fine, I was able to focus on team building and contributing positively across the organization.

It seems that work life balance and “interesting” are often (not always) at odds with each other... have a good feeling for how important each is to YOU.

Consider developing other skills such that your technical skills and knowledge in finance and accounting augment what you actually do, like management or lending or sales or risk management. A sales manager or lender who truly understands the numbers and how the accounting works can quickly set themselves apart.

Or adjust your green visor and embrace the rote nature of accounting for what it is. Different strokes and all.

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Originally Posted by skaredshtles

I got a finance degree way back in the late 80's/early 90's and was pretty much in the same boat with regards to what I wanted (low stress/enjoyable life), so I abandoned finance and got into IT.

Not saying it will work for you... but it sure did work for me.

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Right. Or an IT leader who understands capitalization and opex ratios and budgeting? Winning. That’s when you’re able to work into strategic roles (read: interesting). Just acquired an org that had excess liquidity and a minimal fixed asset ratio who was leasing all their copiers and printers because the IT guys who made the call didn’t understand how the numbers actually worked and nobody dug into it. Minor enough, but five figures worth of wasted bullshit there alone.

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Originally Posted by old mexico

not sure if this thread is dead but id like to revive it if possible and hear from OP. Find myself in a similar position, graduating with my finance major in May and with the current situation my job search has been very quiet. Not sure if I should deviate from my investment banking focus and move into sales or financial advisor positions that are more common, or even just try taking any position within a company I like or in an area id want to live and allow me to partake in my hobbies. big motivator is having an enjoyable/stress-free life and paying off my student loans. sorry if im breaking some rule about posting in old threads, but then again I wouldn't give one if I could find a fuck

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Hey man, I started this thread 7 years ago. Time flies!

A few months later I moved to a small ski town in Colorado and worked for a country club as a staff accountant, which really got me into the details and gave me a baseline knowledge to grow upon. After a few years I moved onto a senior role at one of the smaller ski resort holding companies with a bigger team and more going on (multiple entities, currencies, M&A integrations, continuous improvement projects). Spent a few years there and also studied for a year and got my CPA license. I was ready to chew off more when a smaller sporting goods company needed some help turning around their accounting function. So I jumped at that opportunity a few years ago. The progression at my current company is peaking, so its about time for something new.

Looking back, I would make sure your first real job out of school is with a great boss/coach who can help you progress your career & skills. Just always be asking for more/learning/trying to make your bosses job easier. I've always tried to mix my passions with the businesses I've worked for, but I'm not sure if that's essential. But it does provide you with colleagues that you relate to and a bunch of good friends. Good luck with your search. Where are you located?

It’s been a while and I want to start off by thanking everyone for the insight! I don’t go on here often but I sure was happy to spend some of my afternoon going through everyone’s response.

Responding to the few questions asked, I go to the university of Iowa and have A/B grades. Chose to go big ten because of a residency program to get me instate tuition and save a lot of money. Im from Chicago but my mom recently moved to los alamos New Mexico and will likely relocate there after graduation. Have family and my dad in Chicago but not really an option for rent-free living like my moms haha.

For an enjoyable life all I care about is being somewhere cool like anywhere out west (SLC!) versus my home town of Chicago or a place like New York. I realize the upside to establishing myself and then being able to relocate in the future but I’ve lived my entire life in an urban/ concrete setting and think I am over it. Salt lake seems like an awesome balance between the career opportunities of a city and recreating opportunities of a mountain town. Have been applying out their like crazy but I know local candidates are very attractive over someone like me. Santa Fe is cool however not as opportunity filled as other places.

That being said, I again want to thank everyone for opening my mind up and allowing me to make an informed expansion in my job search. I feel like I should also include that if ANYONE is in need of a finance grad for a position starting after may 15th, PM and let me know. I will be forever indebted and grateful for any opportunities presented, especially one in Utah!


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my cousins are both accountants, groomed for it by their mother. if you ask why they chose that career their only answer is job security. man thats no way to live your life.

I also saw a study that ranked professions by desirability to potential mates, not getting laid but married, spawning little creatures etc. Turns out women were attracted to money and stability and status, as we all know, but were also very attracted to men with professions that were useful to society, and even more attracted to men with meaningful and fulfilling careers that had a positive effect on society. Turns out that this is more attractive than money and status, as long as the guy isn't completely broke and is at least sort of stable.

Funny thing is accountants were the least desirable and impressive career. Neither super rich and powerful and impressive, nor truly fulfilled or making a positive impact on the world. When it ranked societal respect for a profession, not just romantically, lawyers were the bottom of the barrel, although accountants weren't far off.


You probably shouldn't make big life choices based on hoping they will make women like you more, but it is food for thought. Maybe if you're going to be an accountant, do it in cool places for cool companies or charities, or at least use it to create a career that will give you freedom.

I think very few professionals, outside of rock stars, get into the field because the chicks are great.