<p>Hello all. Let me start by saying I'm currently an accounting major working towards the degree. I had considered medical school for a while, but I'm worried about firstly the cost, as I don't want to have to work full time while studying in med school. Parents can't pay for it and can't afford to give me any money to support myself. Also, ideas of the possible changes in health care looming over the nation worry me, as I feel that things may cause the medical profession to turn into a very paperwork, process intensive field.</p>
<p>All that said, I feel like accounting may be a better fit. I only have to go through undergrad, which will leave me with no debt due to my scholarships and financial aide. I can then hopefully start making a relatively good salary, and be advanced to a very nice salary around the same time that my medical school debt would have been payed off. </p>
<p>This is all good and well, but how safe is an accounting degree now-a-days? Are there a lot of threats to outsourcing and such? I know those ignorant to what accountants really do and that insist they are just bean counters say anyone can do it and just counting that a computer or cheaper foreign labor can do, but we know that there is a lot more involved in accounting than that. Also I always hear that due to its popularity, there is a flood of accountants in the field, and employment is hard to find. I suppose that is true in many fields in today's time, but I'm talking relative to other fields.</p>
<p>So is there a good future for the accounting profession? Long term I'd like to move to a more management type position with my degree, but if that doesn't happen I want to know if the field is in good shape for the future.</p>
<p>Accounting is the foundation of business. Understanding the flow of monies from transaction down to the bottom-line is a key component in every business decision (or should be). There is always a need for this understanding. There is much more to the accounting profession than solely “book keeping” type activities. Accountants are the cornerstone of auditing and tax profession, as well as, key components to consulting, investment banks, hedge fund, and private equity practices. Do not worry about a “flood to the market” as the B4 are designed to bring in a lot of talent each year, develop it, and then expect for a good portion of it to move into other fields.</p>
<p>The B4 is designed so that as you are with a firm longer, you advance in a stepping stone fashion. The standard expectation is Associate-senior associate (2 years)-Manager (5 years)-Senior Manager (8 years)-Managing Director(10+)-Partner(12+). It is a demanding industry and the B4 have a lot of turnover, but due to this turnover, there are always needs at the lowest levels and even the top levels at times.</p>
<p>I could go on about this longer, but I think you get the point. haha.</p>
<p>Outsourcing is a threat to accounting as it is to any other profession. At one of my internships at a F100 company with a significant international presence, a lot of the cost analysis and accounting-type functions were done at overseas offices. </p>
<p>Bottom line though, as long as you’re smart and driven, I wouldn’t worry too much about the threat of outsourcing.</p>
<p>Thanks guys. Basically what I expected to hear. There is some outsourcing and flooding of the market, but no more than any other field. I appreciate the answers.</p>
<p>@goose- yes it amazes me when I tell people I’m studying accounting and they tell me “so you’re gonna count for the rest of your life?” </p>
<p>Thankfully we know that there are actually much more interesting aspects to accounting than that</p>
<p>Accountants are really not book-keepers anymore, computers have LONG replaced that role. Accountants nowadays are split between tax consultants, auditors, and other specialized roles. These roles require interaction with the client as well as contacting other people involved with the client. So, there’s really no worry that an accounting job will be outsourced because outsourcing it will be more cumbersome than beneficial.</p>