Many people at least consider a major career change at some point in their lives. More than that, around half of adults actually do it at some point. It’s a financial consideration for some, such as leaving a low-paying job for a more lucrative career in tech.
For others, it’s a matter of pursuing an option they strongly considered earlier in life. While it’s not necessarily at the top of everyone’s list, becoming a CPA is one of the options. If you’re contemplating the leap into accounting, keep reading for seven things you should consider before you do.
1. Education
Before you can even worry about becoming a CPA, you must deal with the educational hurdle. Most states require around 150 hours of coursework in accounting, math, and business courses toward a Bachelor’s degree.
The average Bachelor’s degree clocks in at around 120 hours or around 15 hours per semester. If you want a degree in the average four years, you’re looking at very packed courseloads of 18+ hours a semester. Alternatively, you can look for coursework over the summers or plan on an extra year of classes.
No matter how you do it, it’s a substantial undertaking in terms of time and money.
On top of that, many people pursue a master’s program in accounting or a closely related field as well. That can tack on another two to three years just for your education.
2. Experience
Once you get your degree, the work isn’t over. Each state lays out its requirements for state residents to take the CPA exam. Those requirements can vary, but always include some level of supervised work.
Some states set a specific number of hours. 2000 hours is a fairly common number, as it works out to about one year of supervised work under a licensed CPA. Other states set out a number of years, with one or two years as fairly standard.
You must check your state’s Board of Accountancy for their specific requirements.
3. CPA Exam
Once you check the boxes for education and experience, you must still navigate the CPA exam. It’s considered one of the most difficult professional exams in the country and has a fail rate of around 50%. The big takeaway here is that you should take your study time very seriously.
The CPA exam covers four primary sections:
- Auditing and Attestation
- Business Environment and Concepts
- Financial Accounting and Reporting
- Regulation
You must take and pass all four sections with a grade no lower than 75 percent within an 18-month period. You get four hours for each testing block.
There is an optional ethics exam that some states require and some don’t require.
4. Continuing Education
Assuming you meet all the other requirements and pass the CPA exam, you can apply for and receive your CPA license. That doesn’t mean you’re done with education, however.
Every state requires that its CPAs accumulate continuing professional education credits at a rate of about 40 credits per year. These education credits can cover a wide array of technical and non-technical topics, such as:
- Fraud
- Taxes
- Governmental Accounting
- Ethics
- Business management
Most CPAs will look for topics that apply directly to their daily work. So, if you work for a governmental agency, you might opt for governmental accounting. If you work primarily with businesses, you might focus your attention on taxes and business management.
5. Work Environment
Work environment is a big consideration these days as workers resist return-to-office initiatives. Accounting is one job that has, historically, happened on-site at an office almost without fail. That stems partly from the fact that financial information is so very sensitive for individuals and businesses.
If you don’t see yourself as happy locked into an office on a daily basis, accounting may prove a poor fit for you as a career choice. That doesn’t mean that you are locked into a path toward a cubicle somewhere.
You can certainly set yourself up as a permanent remote worker as a CPA. There are even websites that will help you connect with potential clients, such as https://www.taxfyle.com/freelance-cpa-jobs. While those options exist, however, working as a freelance CPA or full-time remote CPA will add extra challenges to your career choice.
6. Focus
Early on in your career, you’ll likely work for whoever offers you a job. That is a temporary situation, though. At some point, possibly even in college, you’ll figure out where your interests lie in the field of accounting.
Maybe you really do enjoy the process of dealing with tax forms and making them perfect. On the other hand, maybe what you really like is making sure that a company’s books balance at the end of the business quarter. Some of your options include:
- Business/corporate accounting
- Forensic services
- Financial advisor
- Business valuation
- Auditing
If you don’t know exactly what you like at first, try to get a taste for different options early on to help you decide.
7. Salary
Both CPAs and non-CPAs can earn a very good living. On the whole, though, CPAs typically command higher salaries. Part of this is simply that CPAs passed the CPA exam, which demonstrates a grasp of key accounting practices.
Many businesses want a CPA as a management consultant, which often comes with a higher salary. The exact reason for the pay disparity varies from situation to situation, but that pay gap between CPA and non-CPA does exist.
Becoming a CPA and You
Becoming a CPA isn’t a casual decision that you can carry out over the course of a few weeks. It’s generally the endpoint of a long process of education, experience, and testing that can take years to complete.
Things you must consider when deciding include how much time you’re ready to devote, what kind of work environment you want, and your ultimate salary. You must also give some real thought to what area you want to focus on as a CPA
Looking for more career tips? Check out the posts in our Career section.
