<p>I'm entering college this fall as a freshman. I'm going in with 45 credits thanks to AP and dual enrollment classes. So, since I have all my general education FKLs done, I was wondering what other classes I could take. I decided that minoring in some fields would be beneficial to my future career as an accountant/CPA.</p>
<p>I was thinking about minoring in:</p>
<p> Information Technology (College of Engineering)
Professional & Technical Writing (College of Arts & Sciences)
Management Information Systems (College of Business)</p>
<p>I could take all three of these minors and still graduate in 4 years (with a normal load of 15 credits per semester). Originally, I was planning on graduating in three years to save on room and board costs
But is staying the 4th year worth the potential job prospects I will gain from these minors? If I do stay for the 4th year, I will get the last $3,750 installment payment of my university scholarship. So, that would offset the cost of staying the 4th year.</p>
<p>I think these minors complement my major well, but what do you guys think? I know that accountants are notoriously bad writers, but I'm actually a good writer. I figure a minor in Professional & Technical Writing will put me ahead of the pack in job interviews. A minor in IT would help because of how integrated computers are in the accounting world. I'm unsure about the MIS minor, but I guess it would add to the IT minor.</p>
<p>Any personal experience and advice would be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>I don’t think it is worth it to minor in IT and MIS</p>
<p>Could you explain why, Lydia15?</p>
<p>tryandsucceed, if you don’t mind me asking, what school will you be attending? It has been my experience that minors in “information technology” just involve basic things like using word processing and spreadsheet programs, maybe a little programming and web design. Management Information Systems usually involves developing and installing computer systems. I think that MIS would be a better complement to the accounting major. Professional and Technical Writing is good too, but if you already feel that you have good writing skills, I would suggest that you just focus on MIS and maybe take a course on writing memos and business letters.</p>
<p>I would like to suggest some other ideas. I’m not sure how many credits the minor in MIS requires, but if it is less than the actual major, I think it could be good to complete the whole major in MIS. If you still had room left over, I think it might be a good idea to take some courses that require you to give speeches or presentations, and courses that require a good amount of writing. I don’t know this from experience, but I have read a lot of articles that say employers value good communication skills in writing and speaking. Any classes that give you solid experience in these areas would be very beneficial. A lot of people will say that communications majors and minors are full of fluff, but I think it is just as important to develop those skills as it is to develop technical skills.</p>
<p>@skanowsky,</p>
<p>I will be attending University of South Florida. I’m not so sure that IT minors involve such basic material. Read the “IT General Minor” summary:
[College</a> of Engineering](<a href=“http://www.eng.usf.edu/studentservices/InformationTEchnology/Minors.htm]College”>http://www.eng.usf.edu/studentservices/InformationTEchnology/Minors.htm)</p>
<p>Besides having to take “IT Concepts,” I have to choose four of the following classes to take for the IT General minor:</p>
<p>CDA 3101 Computer Organization for IT (3 credit hours)
CEN 3722 Human-Computer Interfaces for IT (3 credit hours)
CIS 4361 IT Security Management (3 credit hours)
CIS 4412 IT Resource Management (3 credit hours)
COP 3515 Program Design for IT (3 credit hours)
EEL 4782 Computer Information Networks for IT (3 credit hours)
EEL 4854 Data Structures and Algorithms for IT (3 credit hours)
ETG 4931 Special Topics in Technology I (1-5 credit hours)
ETG 4932 Special Topics in Technology II (1-5 credit hours)</p>
<p>MIS requires “Systems Analysis and Design” and “Database Administration,” as well as two approved MIS electives.</p>
<p>@skanowsky,</p>
<p>If MIS is as helpful to accounting majors and as desired by potential employers as you make it seem, then how about double majoring in accounting and MIS, and minoring in Professional & Technical Writing?</p>
<p>I sent a few e-mails to the Big 4 asking about which minors they would recommend for an accounting-major job applicant. Now it’s the waiting game.</p>
<p>I see… In that case, it depends on what you want to do once you graduate. I would think that the information technology minor would be better for someone who wants to actually work in the IT department. I looked over the requirements for MIS and it seems that would be better for someone who wants to work in accounting, but have knowledge of information systems. I know one guy that double majored in Accounting and MIS and now he owns his own firm setting up accounting systems for businesses in his area.</p>
<p>I think that would be a good combination. Just don’t neglect interpersonal and public speaking skills.</p>
<p>@skanowsky,</p>
<p>I want to get my Master’s in Accounting and then sit for the CPA exam. Hoping to somewhat climb my way up the corporate ladder, and then one day have my own business from home.</p>