https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Tue, 04 Aug 2026 23:52:39 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397620 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 11:18:38 +0000 Mommy Finger 1397620@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'll admit that I'm sort of a CPA/accounting snob but I wouldn't hire someone that didn't at least aspire to get their CPA. I started in the big 4 and have worked my way up in corporate accounting. I've hired a lot of people in my day and that was always a must. Especially if their major wasn't in accounting. Of course, a masters of accounting will help that. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397608 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 11:14:25 +0000 littlek 1397608@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@yellowbird: It all depends what route he wants to take. If you want to be in public accounting, I would suggest sitting for your CPA. Or if you want to be a Tax Director, CFO, Controller. The hours are rough, no lie. It depends what you do, what your busy season is. If you are in corporate, you live and die by QTR close. My husband was a public auditor, so same issue as being corporate. I'm in taxes and I live and die by tax filing deadlines and issuances of 10Ks and 10Qs. We are a little pushed back because taxes is the last items booked in the financials. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397491 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:36:39 +0000 Mae 1397491@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@lisa1783: He actually studied for his CFA a few years ago! At first he was thinking of going that (brutal) route and he did take the first exam but failed by like 2%. Heartbreaking! After that he decided to regroup and really think about his goals for a while before figuring out if he wanted to pursue the CFA again and he realized he would really like to get more into the management side of things eventually, so he went the MBA route. His company has been really good about moving him around so he has gotten a lot of experience in investments, derivatives, and mortgage loans. I think he's sort of hoping if he can't just move up to AVP at some point that he can find a job elsewhere that is more business-y and less accountant-y. But honestly I'm a (litigation) lawyer… I don't get the money stuff. I have only the most basic grasp of what he does or how the finance/business world works haha. I sort of just trust that he knows what he is doing :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397490 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:36:24 +0000 2PeasinaPod 1397490@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@littlek: I have a feeling my company just wasn't a fan of promoting women in some fields since I'm now recalling a few others getting promoted pretty easily without their CPAs that were men :sad: </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397482 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:34:23 +0000 Smurfette 1397482@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@lisa1783: I know! So much for ever taking a July 4th vacation or going away for New Years. I have to be back in the office on the 2nd. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397478 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:32:17 +0000 lisa1783 1397478@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mae: hahaha - and now you basically know where I work also! I know what you mean - insurance accounting and then investment insurance accounting is really a specialized field. has your husband thought about getting his CFA instead of his masters? Or does he want to be more management rather than being an actual finance person?</p> <p>@Smurfette: it's awful about the restrictions on taking time off! And then when it's quarter or year end then that's another month that you can't take off. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397473 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:31:20 +0000 ALV91711 1397473@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@yellowbird: Before deciding what to do for school he should go and talk to people in positions that he would be interested in. Then he could decide the best route to go to get there. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397463 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:29:25 +0000 yellowbird 1397463@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@littlek: we are located in the eastern panhandle of wva, so there's not too much around us. My dh actually commutes an hour into virginia for the job he has now.</p> <p>I am encouraged that you don't HAVE to go the cpa route, but I also don't want him to get more degrees and not have experience to back it up and then be looked over. Could he get into the field with an economics bachelor's? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397442 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:24:06 +0000 Mae 1397442@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Agree with all re: the schedule! The first week of every month sucks for my dh, as does the entire month of January (month end/quarter end/year end converge in a shit-storm of suck). Although otherwise his schedule is pretty generous I think. Not a ton of late nights or weekends other than those periods, and his company treats him very well IMO (although I'm sure that varies a lot company to company!). </p> <p>Also, almost no one he works with has a CPA, only 1 person that I'm aware of. Lots of MBAs though at the manager or AVP level. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397438 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:23:00 +0000 yellowbird 1397438@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mae: that's what I'm scared of. I don't want him to put time into something if he won't be able to find a job. I don't know what the best thing to do would be. It took him 6 months to find the job he has now and he hates it. It has nothing to do with his degrees at all. </p> <p>Our job market isn't that great, but I told him I'm willing to move if he finds something he wants to pursue. I just want him to be fulfilled. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397434 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:21:14 +0000 Smurfette 1397434@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I don't have a CPA and I am a Sr Staff Accountant for a large public company. Actually don't even have an accounting degree (finance was one of my majors) I would say half of our accountants/managers have CPA and half don't (and even managers). Now to get to CAO or CFO level, yeah you are going to need a CPA.<br /> I do the monthly financials for certain departments. It isn't my dream job but I don't know what is my dream job. So for me it is job.<br /> But I will say that I HATE that I can't take off work at the beginning of the month due to month end close. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397414 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:16:33 +0000 littlek 1397414@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@2PeasinaPod: That's weird. I've only heard that at public actg firms where you HAVE to be a CPA to move to a manager role. I know tons of people in corporate that are doing fine without their CPA. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397413 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:15:37 +0000 littlek 1397413@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@yellowbird: I'm a CPA and specialize in tax, I was in the big 4 and now I'm at a regional firm. My DH is a CPA and was an audit manager in the Big 4. What do you want to know? where are you located? We are always looking to hire good talent. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397407 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:13:18 +0000 2PeasinaPod 1397407@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Just to note, I did work in the Corporate Accounting department at my very large company before I moved to HR. I was essentially told that unless I got my CPA, I wasn't moving up. Things may have changed since then (it was quite some time ago), but that's where my basis is from my CPA comment above! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397391 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:06:57 +0000 Mae 1397391@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@lisa1783: Nope we live in Columbus, Ohio. Which may tell you exactly where he works ;) The only bad part about living here is that there are so FEW companies big enough to need investment accounting departments that he pretty much has to rise through the ranks or make a career change because there aren't really a lot of people who need his skills here. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397385 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:04:32 +0000 Mae 1397385@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@yellowbird: The only thing I'd wonder about-- which I just honestly don't know-- is whether getting an mba in finance first and trying to break into accounting from another career might be more challenging? I really only know how my husband's office works, although I would presume that many big companies would be similar. They wouldn't hire someone with an MBA for a staff accountant position because they are generally looking for people fresh out of school who are just starting out and I would think they'd find an MBA to be overqualified. But at the same time, they wouldn't hire someone with no accounting experience for a higher position. You know what I mean? Like an MBA sort of says "management potential" but if he has no experience to back it up he might sort of find himself without a niche to fit himself into. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397381 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 10:03:05 +0000 lisa1783 1397381@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>It's not completely true - you can definitely be an accountant (not just a bookkeeper) without your CPA. I work for a Fortune 100 company and most of the accountants I work with actually don't have their CPAs - it does make you more marketable though - especially if you're slightly older and this is a career change. I do have my CPA though and just have to say that it's very time intensive. It's a 4 part test and it means at least 1-2 months of studying every day before the test for each section and you only have 18 months to pass all 4 parts after you pass your 1st part so be sure he's willing to put in the time if he wants the license.</p> <p>So there are two career paths - you can be a public accountant where you're an auditor or you go private and do corporate accounting. Public accounting is a little bit more interesting because you can learn about a lot of industries and you see a lot but it's really stressful during busy season. Pay on average is higher. With private accounting, you have book close every month so the first week of every month is busier but much less stressful.</p> <p>I think job availability really depends on where you live. If you live where there are a lot of large companies, the chances of finding an accounting job are good but I know there's a lot of competition out there. If you're DH wants more info, I'd be more than happy to answer any questions - I've been in both public and private accounting and have done the masters in accounting and CPA route.</p> <p>@mae: I work in the investments department of an insurance firm too! Are you in Boston? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397374 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 09:59:55 +0000 yellowbird 1397374@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mae: awesome! That sounds like something my husband would be interested in. A university near us has a mba program - accounting/finance and that's what he's looking into. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397363 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 09:54:46 +0000 Mae 1397363@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>There are a lot of different types of accountants, and not all of them need CPAs. My husband is a corporate accountant for a very large insurance company and he does not have his CPA, just his bachelors in accounting. He doesn't really do the traditional type of "bean counting" accounting most people think of, he basically works in the back office of the investments department. He really loves it! He is currently going back to school to get his MBA (focus on finance) because it is a job you sort of top out in after 5-10 years and you can't progress to management without an MBA. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397359 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 09:53:49 +0000 yellowbird 1397359@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@2PeasinaPod: very good to know! Without a cpa jobs are pretty limited? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397354 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 09:51:26 +0000 2PeasinaPod 1397354@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>He's gotta be able to sit for his CPA. It's a series of tests that are frickin hard! Without his CPA, going back for a degree in accounting would be just for bookkeeping. </p> <p>Though I'm not currently in the accounting field, it was my major with a minor in economics. I didn't want to sit for the CPA, and so I got out of the field completely and went into HR :grin: </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-accountant-bees#post-1397344 Tue, 04 Feb 2014 09:49:05 +0000 yellowbird 1397344@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My dh is thinking about going back to school and is very interested in accounting. He has a bachelor's in economics and history and has taken several accounting classes in undergrad. He's thinking of applying for a master's program.. is this a good step? What is the job market like? Anything he should consider? </p>