<p>What are good paying but yet rewarding careers for business majors? Not too time demanding either like lawyers staying up late. Preferably something independent in which you can open up your own firm.</p>
<p>Hedge Fund/Venture Capitalist/PE/Angel Investing.</p>
<p>However, those usually require prerequisites which involve time demading jobs. However, if you are good and can survive the 4-7 years then you are able to be more lax in terms of working hours.</p>
<p>A CPA is a good career like this, however, you have to pay your dues up front to get to the point where you can just work 35-40 hours a week on your own schedule and make rather decent $$. In fact, accountants usually retire earlier than any other profession, and it's not because they're bored, it's because they can!</p>
<p>accounting is sooooooo boring.</p>
<p>forgiven, how do you know? I've been told by many accounting professionals that the classes are awfully boring, but worth it because the profession is very satisfying, and in today's world the profession is as exciting as it gets, with constant change, and high levels of career mobility. </p>
<p>how do i know? it's just boring to me -_- there are plenty of people that enjoy doing audits and what not, but it just doesn't interest me at all. i know a couple of accountants and i know what they do, and it's just something i wouldn't want to make a career out of. that's all.</p>
<p>Yeah, I guess there are areas of accounting that are boring...but if you take a look at the whole picture, accounting is one of the most flexible degrees. One with an accounting degree can work as accountants, auditors (boring), managers, IT professionals, FBI agents, business owners, etc. The boringness of the schooling--which is only during the lower division classes, IMO--provides many opportunities in the long run. If you ask me, taxes and auditing are the most boring sides of accounting--others may disagree. And for other careers, I don't think I'd last 2 days as a computer programmer or software quality engineer (even with a $70,000 salary)....talk about BORING!</p>
<p>311Griff - "In fact, accountants usually retire earlier than any other profession, and it's not because they're bored, it's because they can"</p>
<p>That's great to here,but why is that?</p>
<p>How do most end up retiring early? Become a partner?</p>
<p>"One with an accounting degree can work as accountants, auditors (boring), managers, IT professionals, FBI agents, business owners, etc."</p>
<p>I'm not sure why you keep saying that auditing is the boring part of accounting--that couldn't be further from the truth. It involves a great deal of person-to-person contact and you get to work in a variety of environments throughout the year (in other words, you're never stuck in the same office). You're always meeting new people and traveling. If you're working at a large firm, you're also dealing with big issues that can have a great deal of impact (the perfect example would be Enron and the consolidation of SPEs). Auditing also provides the best experience and exit opportunities--many people leave and go into internal auditing, upper level management, consulting and finance.</p>
<p>If anything, private accounting and taxation are the really boring areas.</p>
<p>"If you ask me, taxes and auditing are the most boring sides of accounting--others may disagree."</p>
<p>What exactly are you planning on doing after graduation, then? If you really want to go far in accounting, you'll really need public accounting experience--which limits you to (pretty much) tax and audit.</p>
<p>"In fact, accountants usually retire earlier than any other profession, and it's not because they're bored, it's because they can!"</p>
<p>That really isn't true. While the money is good and steady, I certainly wouldn't say that accounting affords most people an earlier retirement than most other professions.</p>
<p>what is angel investing?</p>
<p>CPAs will have to work day and night during tax season if they work for personal accounting firms like H&R Block.</p>
<p>CPAs will have to work like 23 hours per week during SEC filing season (of which there are FOUR per year) and corporate income tax season if they work for larger corporate firms like Deloitte.</p>
<p>Consulting's always interesting.</p>
<p>"CPAs will have to work day and night during tax season if they work for personal accounting firms like H&R Block."</p>
<p>H&R Block is not an accounting firm. They are a tax preparation service--and a poor one, at that. They do not employ CPAs. I believe that the H&R Block corporation owns RSM McGladrey, which is an accounting firm; however, they are completely seperate.</p>
<p>Either way, I worked for a small CPA firm when I was in college. Their primary focus was taxation. I definitely did not work day and night. I was never at the office past 8 pm and the owners were usually gone by 6 pm. Some offices do require long hours, but that varies from office to office based on the number of and types of clients.</p>
<p>"CPAs will have to work like 23 hours per week during SEC filing season (of which there are FOUR per year) and corporate income tax season if they work for larger corporate firms like Deloitte."</p>
<p>For one, Deloitte is not a corporation. But 23 hours a week??? Do you mean a day? Because all of the Big 4 require a minimum of 50 hours/week year-round. During busy season (which varies depending on your clients and line of service--it doesn't necessarily coincide with tax season), you're likely to work some 70-80 hour weeks. You'll probably work a couple 24 hour days if you have trouble clients, but that's not a regular occurance.</p>
<p>Can you all tell me the difference between an acountant and an auditor? Are they the same? Or audit is simply just one of the job of an acountant?</p>
<p>What the heck is the "Big 4" and why should I care?</p>
<p>Yeah I meant 23 hours per day.</p>
<p>
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What the heck is the "Big 4" and why should I care?
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</p>
<p>it refers to the big 4 accounting firms (in no particular order): deloitte & touche, ernst & young, KPMG, and pricewaterhousecoopers. </p>
<p>they're basically the "ivies" of the accounting industry.</p>
<p>Okay, thanks.</p>
<p>"Can you all tell me the difference between an acountant and an auditor? Are they the same? Or audit is simply just one of the job of an acountant?"</p>
<p>Yes, an auditor is a type of accountant. When people talk about auditors, they are usually talking about public accountants. Public accountants represent the public's interest by evaluating a company's internal controls and expressing an opinion about whether or not the company's financial statements are in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles. In other words, they make sure that a company's accountants are doing everything right and that the company has the right procedures in place to stop fraud. Public companies that have more than 500 shareholders or have stock that is traded on an exchange are required to produce certain information throughout the year and its financial statements are required to be audited by a registered public accounting firm (and a CPA has to sign off on the audit). Firms also hire auditors to sign off on their financials when they are going through an IPO, if they want a large loan or for their own assurance.</p>
<p>Large companies also have their own internal auditors, who make sure that everything is done as it should be. Many internal auditors are ex-public accountants and a lot of them end up becoming CIAs (Cert. Internal Auditors).</p>
<p>Hedge Fund or Business Consult?</p>