Accounting or Finance?

[Starry436]

I am currently an undergraduate in Accounting, and after taking a few accounting classes I am not sure that I enjoy the education aspect of it. I work in an accounting firm - and everything in real life is completely different so I enjoy it much more than the school part of it. I am not doing well in these current accounting classes I am in, it is just not sticking; I have a finance class and I feel as if everything discussed in this class really pertains to the real world and so I understand it a lot better. I was considering switching to major in Finance - but I can't really weigh between the two options. What really classifies you as an "Accountant" -- my boss calls herself an accountant but she is not a CPA...must your degree come from a concentration in accounting to really be considered an accountant? I am a little unsure if finance and accounting really differ too much in the job world...?

[jpg7n16]

I am currently an undergraduate in Accounting, and after taking a few accounting classes I am not sure that I enjoy the education aspect of it. I work in an accounting firm - and everything in real life is completely different so I enjoy it much more than the school part of it. I am not doing well in these current accounting classes I am in, it is just not sticking; I have a finance class and I feel as if everything discussed in this class really pertains to the real world and so I understand it a lot better. I was considering switching to major in Finance - but I can't really weigh between the two options.

I was a finance major. My girlfriend is a CPA.

We like to joke that my degree helps decide what to do, and her's helps tell people what we did.

In corporate finance, you deal more with decision making. What is the potential ROI on this project? How should we allocate capital? Is that the best corporate structure?

In corporate accounting, you deal more with tracking. What were the revenues and expenses on this project? How is the capital currently allocated? Are all the funds correctly accounted for?

What really classifies you as an "Accountant" -- my boss calls herself an accountant but she is not a CPA...must your degree come from a concentration in accounting to really be considered an accountant?

An accountant is someone whose profession is in the business of accounting for things. You do not have to be a CPA to be an accountant. You do not have to have a degree in accounting to be an accountant.

Much like how you do not need to have an degree in education to be a teacher.

I am a little unsure if finance and accounting really differ too much in the job world...?

There are different divisions of finance, and different divisions on accounting. For instance, I chose the personal finance route - I help with retirement planning, investment decisions, etc. You will not find any of those topics on the CPA exam. So certain sections are very different.


What exactly do you do at your accounting firm?

[MonkeyMama]

I am currently an undergraduate in Accounting, and after taking a few accounting classes I am not sure that I enjoy the education aspect of it. I work in an accounting firm - and everything in real life is completely different so I enjoy it much more than the school part of it. I am not doing well in these current accounting classes I am in, it is just not sticking;

I am a CPA - just a couple of thoughts:

#1 - education really does not have a lot to do with the real world when it comes to accounting. I've always said it was a field where experience was more valued than education (the CPA license focuses more on experience than education, for example). I was just telling someone once they pass the exam they can forget everything they learned for the CPA exam. I didn't find most of it very practical. Plus, it's a very broad test whereas you will narrow down your focus considerably in the real world.

#2 - Which classes exactly are you having trouble with? In contrast to answer #1, if you are really struggling with accounting as a whole, it may not just be your thing. But since you like your job, I am not getting this sense. What are you doing in your job?

I think jpg says it well.

I could not imagine being an accountant without a CPA license - more opportunities, better pay. But it depends somewhat on exactly what you want to do - not that it makes sense for everyone.

In general you need an accounting degree to be an accountant, but most accountants are not CPAs.

[Ramose]

I am also an undergraduate studying accounting and find that Finance is more about graphs and economics to determine how to proceed while Accounting uses ratios to report on how well the business performed.

Finance - Make a plan for the future.
Accounting- Review the plan after the fact.

That's just how I see it anyway.