Public Accountant Careers

Job Summary:
Public accountants maintain books of accounts, prepare financial statements, perform audits, manage tax planning and offer consultancy for businesses, governments, individuals etc. They are professionally qualified with broad knowledge of enterprise accounting and manage the liquidity, assets / liabilities of the organization and the related reportings as per internationally accepted standards like GAAP.

Public accountants may be employed by an organization or may be self employed and work as consultants. They may specialize in tax planning, bankruptcies, forensic accounting etc. Public accountants provide a wide range of services like financial and investment planning, budget analysis and management accounting, They are also well aware of the legal framework and IT environment.

Qualification:
Four years bachelor's degree in Accounting and the four part CPA examination conducted by the AICPA.

The estimated number of accountants and auditors in 2003 were around 1.2 Million.

Salary Range:
On an average, accountants with upto 1year of experience earned about $ 40,000, senior accountants earned about $ 65,000, Managers earned about $ 75.000. Salaries depend on size and complexity of the job, location, education level and professional qualifications.

Prospects:
There is great demand for Public Accountants with demand far outstripping supply of qualified professionals till 2008. The outlook is very positive and the role of the public accountant is changing rapidly. They are expected to become future CFOs of the organization and manage people and businesses and not limit their roles to only financial analysis. An online Accounting degree is a great way to get your Accounting career started.