Accounting And Finance

[giggleblue]

i basically was wanting to know if anyone here was a cpa. i'm entering my junior year of college and majoring in accounting and finance. i was wondering if anyone on this site had a degree in accounting or finance. what are you doing with your degree now? did you go to get your masters and take the cpa exam? do you know if any companies that offer paid internships for those majoring in accounting? do you suggest that you go to grad school after you get your bba in accounting, or do you suggest entering the work force right away? basically, i'm looking for any tips or suggestions that could help me now...

[Lagina]

This is a great time i n this economy for accounting professionals. I would suggest you get an internship and complete the (150 credits for MD's cpa exam) if you haven't already and start studying for it. I have a B.S. in math and I am getting my masters in accounting so I can sit for the CPA exam probably in 06/07. But if you already have your necessary credits, I would just go ahead and study for the exam and pass it, without the masters. If your thinking about tax accounting I would advise to go ahead and find a program you like and get started with that. But the key now while your still in school is to get an internship!! I'm sure your state has government postions (internships) for college students. Start there. Good luck to you!!

[flynppy]

I agree with everything Lagina said, I graduated with a BBA in accounting. I interned at PricewaterhouseCoopers during my years at school, and yes it was paid. Just about all the accounting firms usually offer paid internship. I would suggest doing them sometimes you might even end up with a job offer out of it.

As for myself I plan on going back to school for my masters, but not exactly sure. Maybe even taking the CPA, thinking about it.

Good luck in your chosen career.

[giggleblue]

ok, i am really looking for an internship for next summer, and so i'm really gonna be looking this summer and this fall. i also am gonna register with the career services as soon as i get back to school next week. now, since i'm double majoring in accounting and finance, i will wind up about 9 hours shy of the 150 hours need to sit for the exam, so i'm not sure if i'm going to take some filler classes, or go to get my masters. i really am leaning more towards getting my masters at this point. now one thing i was wondering about was studing for the cpa exam. are there test prep books that you can buy, or how would you go about getting test prep information? i'm a junior now, so is it too early for me to start studying for the exam, or would starting now really give me a heads up? also, does anyone know how much it cost to sit for the exam?

[stormy]

I would say it's never too early to start studying for that exam :razz .
Some ppl take it the last semester in college but the review course is their only class. The exam is extremely comprehensive yet very textbook for lack of a better description. So, it's better to be very committed to it and study that way. If you have other classes (that are needed for graduation) going on, it might be better to wait until you have time to fully devote to it. Other ppl take the exam once they start working. The upside to that is sometimes your employer pays the cost to sit and in some cases the cost of prep classes/books. There are lots and lots of resources avail for preparation. I would say it's best to evaluate the way you prepare for tests in school and use that as a guide to determine the best way to prepare for the exam.

The cost of the exam varies by state. Recently the format chg'd to a computerized exam so it is offered more often. The areas tested also chg'd so I won't be that helpful on that. Here's a link to AICPA that might help: http://www.cpa-exam.org/

[giggleblue]

looking at that website, i see that it can cost anywhere between 575 and 800 for the exam, so it looks like i'm going to need to start studing like today. i don't want to have to take the exam more than once, considering how expensive it is. something else though. what gpa do you think will be best when looking for an entry level job in accounting once i graduate. for those of you who went on internships, what did your gpa look like?

[carboncopysue]

Originally posted by giggleblue@May 26 2004, 05:36 AM
looking at that website, i see that it can cost anywhere between 575 and 800 for the exam, so it looks like i'm going to need to start studing like today. i don't want to have to take the exam more than once, considering how expensive it is. something else though. what gpa do you think will be best when looking for an entry level job in accounting once i graduate. for those of you who went on internships, what did your gpa look like?
I haven't gone on internship yet, but I'm looking...

I'm trying for one of the Big 4 Firms (PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Ernst & Young, KPMG, always forget the last one...), and they usually look for 3.5 and above. I don't have that in grad school, but I don't know if that was a hinderance to me not getting the internship. I'm also trying smaller firms that need accountants. They'd take 3.0 and above. I would say get an internship, and that experience should help in case your GPA isn't exactly where you want it to be.

Also, start thinking about the state in which you want to get your CPA. There are different requirements of coursesfor different states. Check the AICPA website if you haven't already to see the requirements by state. I know one alumna that graduated in Florida and got her CPA here (we have one of the most basic course requirements here, I believe), but when she went to work in Maryland, she had to take an ethics class in order to have her CPA certified there.

Sue.

[giggleblue]

thank you everyone for your advice and input. i actually went to the grad school office here at the university, and saw how many hours it would take to get a masters. i plan on going to school year round from this point forward, so once i graduate with my bba, i will start my masters that summer. it should take me about a year and a half, going to school full time. meanwhile, i got a job on campus with an accounting department or fiscal office, so i am getting experience from that, and actually looking into the requirements for trying to get my job to qualify for college credit as an internship or co-op. i really enjoy the hands on experience and the department i work in. everyone has their own office and does their own thing, so i really enjoy the fact that this career doesn't involve a whole lot of personal interaction. i love people, but everyone needs their space...

[nappynana]

Does anyone here work in investment banking? If so, what do you do (sales and trading, equity research, etc) and do you like your job?

Thanks.
nana