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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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

@mae: I work in the investments department of an insurance firm too! Are you in Boston?

@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.

@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.

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.
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.
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.

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!).

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.

@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.

@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.

@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

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.