<p>Is accounting worth it if you choose not to do CPA?</p>
<p>These are the reasons I'm considering not doing CPA</p>
<p>Firstly, I work full-time to pay for school</p>
<p>Which brings me to my next point, Internships</p>
<p>What if I can't get an internship at a Big 4 or other CPA firm? Would my chances of a job be screwed?</p>
<p>Secondly, I noticed on my colleges career links, PwC for example says you must have 150 credits completed by fall 2014, but because I am only taking like 9-10 credits a semester (due to full time work) this won't be possible for me. </p>
<p>I am willing to stop working full time at my job for a Big 4 internship, but that wouldn't be until next summer, but I still won't be able to make the 150 credits by Fall 2014.</p>
<p>So basically, since it doesn't seem like I can do CPA, would accounting still be worth it?</p>
<p>Although CPA is (and should be, as some would argue) the goal of most enting the Accounting field, it is entirely possible to make it in Accounting without the designation. I work with a lot of people who have accounting degrees and relatively few of them are CPAs. Most of them that I work with actually went to work right away after undergrad for a few years and then decided to go to complete the 150 credit requirement to sit for the exams.</p>
<p>CPA opens a lot of doors, but so does having an accounting degree as well. You would most likely be going against the tide at the B4 firms when interviewing for internships, but the B4 aren’t the only places that have internships. If you’re content on not shooting for CPA right away after undergrad, then I would suggest you branch out to other internship opps other than the B4, like smaller local firms or Govt, and see if you like your outcomes without CPA or if you’d still like to obtain the designation.</p>
<p>Its not necessary for accounting outside the Big 4. In terms of career advancement, however, a CPA is an good thing to have. I can safely generalize that most firms require you to achieve a certification/master degree in order to be promoted beyond a certain position. In this case, a CPA would be the most cost and time effective option assuming one is a accounting major.</p>
<p>I would do CPA, but an internship is key, and I’m just not sure if I can get one with the big 4 because I currently work full time and only do school part time. I’m willingly to cut back work for an internship, but I wont have 150 credits by fall 2014 like the requirements say, ill probably need another semester on top of that.</p>
<p>Ok, Listen up! You don’t need to obtain your CPA before you get a job with any accounting firm. I do, however, highly recommend that you get your 150 credits finished before you go to work for any firm on a full time basis. You certainly can and should seek internships during summer and maybe at other times however. </p>
<p>Although there are many designations that are available to accountants such as CMA etc., the CPA is the gold standard and is highly sought after by all firms even the government. Most people, however, start studying for it and take the exam while they are working full time. Yes, it is a big hassle, and you will be puting in long hours. However, this is the way most people do it.</p>
<p>Can you have a successful career without getting the CPA? YES! However, you will be much better served and see a lot more opportunity with it.</p>
<p>Trizz75 notes, “For Big 4 you have to have your 150 hrs before you start working. It’s a requirement, not a recommendation.”</p>
<p>Response: My post, noted in post 6, referred to accounting firms in general and NOT just the Big 4. Yes, you may be right in that they would require the 150 credits before working for them. This, however, is not necessarily true for the other firms, although as noted above, I do recommend that the 150 credits be gotten before working for an accounting firm full time. It will just be too hard and too long of a grind to get the remaining 30 credits while working for an accounting firm and then getting the CPA afterwards.</p>
<p>Accounting firms in general (not just big 4) require you to be CPA exam eligible. There may be some exceptions, but probably not very many - especially at reputable firms. All of the firms (big, mid sized, small, tiny) at my school required the 150.</p>