Entry Level Business Jobs

By: David Millers

There are plenty of entry level opportunities for new accounting graduates. In recent years there have been smaller numbers of students choosing accounting as their field of study creating a shortage of accounting graduates. There are several reasons for this; one the requirements have become tougher; two the field has gotten a bad reputation from accounting scandals; and three increasingly complex laws and regulations have made it an unpopular field to work in for many.

There are four basic fields of accounting: Public Accounting; Managerial Accounting; Governmental Accounting; and, Internal Auditing. Each of these fields has widely varying job duties, however the fundamental tasks of the profession broadly stated "are to prepare, analyze, and verify financial documents in order to provide information to clients". Most accounting jobs require at least a bachelor degree in accounting, but previous job experience is also helpful and most collages offer part time and summer internships.

It is important for aspiring accountants to have an aptitude for math and be and able to analyze, compare, and interpret facts and figures quickly and accurately. Good communication skills both verbally and in writing are essential. Accountants must be able to work with people, business systems, and computers effectively and have a familiarity with basic accounting and computer software packages as well as be able to understand complex law regulations and accounting concepts.

As mentioned earlier the requirements for accountants have become more stringent in recent years. As of 2007, 42 States and the District of Columbia required CPA candidates to have 150 semester hours of college coursework, which is an additional 30 hours beyond the usual four year bachelor's degree and several other States are in the process of implementing similar requirements. Many schools have altered their programs as a result and now offer masters degrees as part of the 150 hours. Becoming a CPA will be much more difficult in the future.
Even though CPAs are regulated by their individual states, the very rigorous two day four-part Uniform CPA Examination is used throughout the United States. Also there is an experience requirement for a CPA certificate in most states; however requirements vary from state to state.