Jobs for accountants and auditors are expected to grow by 18 percent between 2006 and 2016, which is faster than the average for all careers. This career will have a very large number of new jobs arise, almost 226,000 over the projections decade. An increase in the number of businesses, changing financial laws, and corporate governance regulations, and increased accountability for protecting an organization's stakeholders will drive job growth.
Related job titles are: Auditor, Internal Auditor, Auditor-in-Charge, Assurance Manager, Audit Manager, Internal Audit Director, Assurance Senior, Audit Partner, Deputy for Audit, or Financial Auditor.
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Important Accountant and Auditor Degree Information -Top of Page-
- Most jobs require at least a bachelor's degree in accounting or a related field.
- Job opportunities should be favorable; those who have earned professional recognition through certification or licensure, especially a CPA, should enjoy the best prospects.
- Much faster than average employment growth will result from an increase in the number of businesses, changing financial laws and regulations, and greater scrutiny of company finances.
How much does an Accountant and Auditor make in Salary? || Accountant and Auditor Pay -Top of Page-
Median annual pay of accountants and auditors were $59,430 in May 2008. The middle half of the occupation earn a salary of between $45,900 and $78,210. The bottom 10 percent earn a salary of less than $36,720, and the top 10 percent earn a salary of more than $102,380. Median annual pay in the industries employing the largest numbers of accountants and auditors were as follows:
Accountanting, tax preparation, bookkeeping, and payroll services $61,480
Management of companies and enterprises 59,820
Local government 53,660
Insurance carriers 59,550
State government 51,250
According to a salary survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, bachelor's degree candidates in accounting received starting offers averaging $48,993 a year in July 2009; master's degree candidates in accounting were offered $49,786 initially.
According to a 2007 salary survey conducted by Robert Half International, a staffing services firm specializing in accounting and finance, general accountants and internal an auditor with up to 1 year of experience make between $31,500 and $48,250 a year. Those auditors with 1 to 3 years of experience make between $36,000 and $60,000. A senior accountant or auditor make between $43,250 and $79,250, managers between $51,250 and $101,500, and directors of accounting and internal auditing between $68,000 and $208,000. The variation in salaries reflects differences in size of firm, location, level of education, and professional credentials.
In the Federal Government, the starting annual salary for a junior accountant and auditor was $28,862 in 2007. Candidates who had a superior academic record might start at $35,752, while applicants with a master's degree or 2 years of professional experience usually began at $43,731. Beginning salaries were slightly higher in selected geographic areas where the prevailing local pay level was higher. Accountants employed by the Federal Government in nonsupervisory, supervisory, and managerial jobs averaged $78,665 a year in 2007; auditors averaged $83,322.
Salary accountants and auditors usually receive standard benefits, including health and medical insurance, life insurance, a 401(k) plan, and paid annual leave. High-level senior accountants may receive additional benefits, such as the use of a company car and an expense account.
What is an Accountant and Auditor? || What does an Accountant and Auditor do? || Job Descriptions -Top of Page-
Accountants and auditors help to ensure that the Nation's firms are run efficiently, its public records kept accurately, and its taxes paid properly and on time. They perform these vital functions by offering an increasingly wide array of business and accounting services, including public, management, and government accounting, as well as internal auditing, to their clients. Beyond carrying out the fundamental tasks of the career–preparing, analyzing, and verifying financial documents in order to provide information to clients–many accountants now are required to possess a wide range of knowledge and skills. Accountants and auditors are broadening the services they offer to include budget analysis, financial and investment planning, information technology consulting, and limited legal services.
Specific job duties vary widely among the four major fields of accounting: public, management, and government accounting and internal auditing.
Public accountants perform a broad range of accounting, auditing, tax, and consulting activities for their clients, which may be corporations, governments, nonprofit organizations, or individuals. For example, some public accountants concentrate on tax matters, such as advising companies about the tax advantages and disadvantages of certain business decisions and preparing individual income tax returns. Others offer advice in areas such as compensation or employee health care benefits, the design of accounting and data-processing systems, and the selection of controls to safeguard assets. Still others audit clients' financial statements and inform investors and authorities that the statements have been correctly prepared and reported. Public accountants, many of whom are Certified Public Accountants (CPAs), generally have their own businesses or work for public accounting firms.
Some public accountants specialize in forensic accounting–investigating and interpreting white-collar crimes such as securities fraud and embezzlement, bankruptcies and contract disputes, and other complex and possibly criminal financial transactions, including money laundering by organized criminals. Forensic accountants combine their knowledge of accounting and finance with law and investigative techniques in order to determine whether an activity is illegal. Many forensic accountants work closely with law enforcement personnel and lawyers during investigations and often appear as expert witnesses during trials.
In response to recent accounting scandals, new Federal legislation restricts the nonauditing services that public accountants can provide to clients. If an accounting firm audits a client's financial statements, that same firm cannot provide advice on human resources, technology, investment banking, or legal matters, although accountants may still advise on tax issues, such as establishing a tax shelter. Accountants may still advise other clients in these areas or may provide advice within their own firm.
Management accountants–also called cost, managerial, industrial, corporate, or private accountants–record and analyze the financial information of the companies for which they work. Among their other responsibilities are budgeting, performance evaluation, cost management, and asset management. Usually, management accountants are part of executive teams involved in strategic planning or the development of new products. They analyze and interpret the financial information that corporate executives need in order to make sound business decisions. They also prepare financial reports for other groups, including stockholders, creditors, regulatory agencies, and tax authorities. Within accounting departments, management accountants may work in various areas, including financial analysis, planning and budgeting, and cost accounting.
A government accountant and auditor work in the public sector, maintaining and examining the records of government agencies and auditing private businesses and individuals whose activities are subject to government regulations or taxation. An accountant employed by Federal, State, and local governments guarantee that revenues are received and expenditures are made in accordance with laws and regulations. Those employed by the Federal Government may work as Internal Revenue Service agents or in financial management, financial institution examination, or budget analysis and administration.
An internal auditor verify the accuracy of their organization's internal records and check for mismanagement, waste, or fraud. Internal auditing is an increasingly important area of accounting and auditing. An internal auditor examines and evaluates their firms' financial and information systems, management procedures, and internal controls to ensure that records are accurate and controls are adequate to protect against fraud and waste. An internal auditor also reviews company operations, evaluating their efficiency, effectiveness, and compliance with corporate policies and procedures, laws, and government regulations. There are many types of highly specialized auditors, such as electronic data-processing, environmental, engineering, legal, insurance premium, bank, and health care auditors. As computer systems make information timelier, internal auditors help managers to base their decisions on actual data, rather than personal observation. An internal auditor also may recommend controls for their organization's computer system, to ensure the reliability of the system and the integrity of the data. An internal auditor may also have specialty titles, such as information technology auditor, environmental auditor, and compliance auditor.
Technology is rapidly changing the nature of the work of most accountants and auditors. With the aid of special software packages, accountants summarize transactions in the standard formats of financial records and organize data in special formats employed in financial analysis. These accounting packages greatly reduce the tedious work associated with data management and recordkeeping. Computers enable accountants and auditors to be more mobile and to use their clients' computer systems to extract information from databases and the Internet. As a result, a growing number of accountants and auditors with extensive computer skills specialize in correcting problems with software or in developing software to meet unique data management and analytical needs. Accountants also are beginning to perform more technical duties, such as implementing, controlling, and auditing computer systems and networks and developing a business's technology plans.
Accountants also act as personal advisors. They not only provide clients with accounting and tax help, but also help them develop personal budgets, manage assets and investments, plan for retirement, and recognize and reduce their exposure to risks. This role is in response to clients' demands for a single trustworthy individual or firm to meet all of their financial needs. However, accountants are restricted from providing these services to clients whose financial statements they also prepare
Working Conditions for Accountants and Auditors -Top of Page-
Most accountants and auditors work in a typical office setting. Self-employed accountants may be able to do part of their work at home. An accountant and auditor employed by public accounting firms and government agencies may travel frequently to perform audits at branches of their firm, clients' places of business, or government facilities.
Most accountants and auditors generally work a standard 40-hour week, but many work longer hours, particularly if they are self-employed and have numerous clients. Tax specialists often work long hours during the tax season
How to Become an Accountant and Auditor || Accountant and Auditor Classes and Degree Programs -Top of Page-
Most accountant and auditor jobs require at least a bachelor's degree in accounting or a related field. Beginning accounting and auditing jobs in the Federal Government, for example, usually require 4 years of college (including 24 semester hours in accounting or auditing) or an equivalent combination of education and experience. Some employers prefer applicants with a master's degree in accounting, or with a master's degree in business administration with a concentration in accounting.
Some graduates of junior colleges or business or correspondence schools, as well as bookkeepers and accounting clerks who meet the education and experience requirements set by their employers, can obtain junior accounting jobs and advance to accountant jobs by demonstrating their accounting skills on the job.
As of 2007, 42 States and the District of Columbia required CPA candidates to complete 150 semester hours of college coursework-an additional 30 hours beyond the usual 4-year bachelor's degree. Several other States have adopted similar legislation that will become effective before 2009. Colorado, Delaware, New Hampshire, and Vermont are the only States that do not have any immediate plans to require the 150 semester hours..
Previous experience in accounting or auditing can help an applicant get a job. Many colleges offer students the opportunity to gain experience through summer or part-time internship programs conducted by public accounting or business firms. In addition, as many business processes are now automated, practical knowledge of computers and their applications is a great asset for jobseekers in the accounting and auditing fields.
Many senior corporation executives have a background in accounting, internal auditing, or finance. Beginning public accountants often advance to jobs with more responsibility in 1 or 2 years and to senior jobs within another few years. Those who excel may become supervisors, managers, or partners; open their own public accounting firm; or transfer to executive jobs in management accounting or internal auditing in private firms.
Management accountants often start as a cost accountant, junior internal auditor, or trainee for other accounting jobs. As they rise through the organization, they may advance to accounting manager, chief cost accountant, budget director, or manager of internal auditing. Some become controllers, treasurers, financial vice presidents, chief financial officers, or corporation presidents.
Public accountants, management accountants, and internal auditors usually have much occupational mobility. Practitioners often shift into management accounting or internal auditing from public accounting, or between internal auditing and management accounting. It is less common for an accountant and auditor to move from either management accounting or internal auditing into public accounting. Additionally, because they learn about and review the internal controls of various business units within a company, an internal auditor often gains the experience needed to become upper-level managers
Where are the Accountant and Auditor Jobs? -Top of Page-
Accountants and auditors held about 1.3 million jobs in 2006. They worked throughout private industry and government, but 21 percent of accountants worked for accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping, and payroll services firms. Approximately 10 percent of accountants or auditors was self-employed.
Many management accountants, internal auditors, or government accountants and auditors are not CPAs; however, a large number are licensed CPAs. Most accountants and auditors work in urban areas, where public accounting firms and central or regional offices of businesses are concentrated.
Some with backgrounds in accounting and auditing are full-time college and university faculty; others teach part time while working as a self-employed accountant or accountant for private industry or government.
Accountant and Auditor Job Opportunities and Outlook -Top of Page-
Jobs for accountants and auditors are expected to grow by 18 percent between 2006 and 2016, which is faster than the average for all careers. This career will have a very large number of new jobs arise, almost 226,000 over the projections decade. An increase in the number of businesses, changing financial laws, and corporate governance regulations, and increased accountability for protecting an organization's stakeholders will drive growth.
As the economy grows, the number of business establishments will increase, requiring more accountants and auditors to set up books, prepare taxes, and provide management advice. As these businesses grow, the volume and complexity of information reviewed by an accountant and auditor regarding costs, expenditures, taxes, and internal controls will expand as well. The globalization of business also has led to more demand for accounting expertise and services related to international trade and accounting rules and international mergers and acquisitions.
An increased need for accountants and auditors also will arise from changes in legislation related to taxes, financial reporting standards, business investments, mergers, and other financial events. As a result of accounting scandals at several large corporations, Congress passed the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 in an effort to curb corporate accounting fraud. This legislation requires public companies to maintain well-functioning internal controls to ensure the accuracy and reliability of their financial reporting. It also holds the company's chief executive personally responsible for falsely reporting financial information.
These changes are expected to lead to increased scrutiny of company finances and accounting procedures and should create opportunities for an accountant and auditor, particularly CPAs, to audit financial records more thoroughly. Management accountants and internal auditors increasingly will also be needed to discover and eliminate fraud before audits, and ensure that important processes and procedures are documented accurately and thoroughly. Also, efforts to make government agencies more efficient and accountable will increase demand for government accountants.
Increased focus on and numbers of financial crimes such as embezzlement, bribery, and securities fraud will increase the demand for a forensic accountant to detect illegal financial activity by individuals, companies, and organized crime rings. Computer technology has made these crimes easier to commit, and they are on the rise. At the same time, the development of new computer software and electronic surveillance technology has made tracking down financial criminals easier, thus increasing the ease, and likelihood of, discovery. As success rates of investigations grow, demand for a forensic accountant will increase.
The changing role of accountants and auditors also will spur job growth, although this will be slower than in the past because of changes in the law. Federal legislation now prohibits an accountant from providing many types of management and consulting services to clients whose books they audit. However, an accountant will still be able to advise clients that are not publicly traded companies and those they do not audit.
Also, the increasing popularity of tax preparation firms and computer software will shift accountants away from tax preparation. As computer programs continue to simplify some accounting-related tasks, clerical staff will increasingly handle many routine calculations