Can you be a successful accountant without becoming a CPA?
I’m a senior accounting major and I am not sure if I want to go for the masters and become a CPA. In the beginning I did, but now I have two toddlers. I don’t know if I would have time to devote to school. I am considering maybe starting a home-based business doing consultation or bookkeeping. I am not trying to make millions (Thats would be nice though)or anything just make a comfortable salary every month. Maybe 00-00 a month. Does this sound like a good idea?
Tagged with: accounting • bookkeeping • consultation • CPA • home based business • masters • salary • starting a home based business • toddlers • would have time
Filed under: CPA
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I think you can if you’re driven!
I languished in the "bookkeeping" part of banks, doing clerical and other jobs… then decided to really dedicate my free time to getting my degree. I earned my BS in Accounting the same weekend my oldest graduated from HS! I started sitting for the CPA right after that – took me 5 attempts to pass all parts, but I finally DID IT! I tell you what, it is the greatest feeling in the world to have passed!
surf around the AICPA website, or your state CPA society, network with other accounting students where you go to school.
Take the H&R tax course either way…. you will learn more about taxes from that than ANYTHING you study for your degree or the CPA exam.
Best of luck to you!
You would probably be much better able to promote your home based business if you were a CPA. However, I have a BS in accounting and an MBA in Mgmt and I am studying for the CPA Exama d we have an 11 month old and I can tell you it is very difficult to study for the exam when you have kids. I don’t know of any home based accountants who don’t do taxes and have been able to build a successful consulting or bookkeeping business without drawing in customers first through doing taxes. In many states you don’t necessarily need a masters to sit for the cpa. In maryland you need to have taken certain accounting and business law and ethics courses but most undergrad business programs would have these so to get the 150 hr you could take whatever courses you wanted. Many jobs that I have seen advertise that they need someone to either have an mba or be a cpa so you will probably have to do one or the other. I did my mba through an evening program and it was much easier than studying for the cpa exam. MBA studying required a few hours a week of study outside a few hours of class while the cpa requires a couple hours a day of studying. The mba can also be spaced out more, over a few years while the cpa gives you 18 mons to pass all 4 parts. I have known accountants who work in internal auditing or public accounting who are neither mbas or cpas but make the salary you desire. Public accounting usu, requires long hours so many people only do it for a few years then move on. Also some jobs will pay for mba classes. See what jobs are out there that you like and can do before making a decision.
You don’t need to have masters degree to have CPA, at least in California.
Many HR Block and other tax prep franchise owners make more money than a lot of CPA. And depending on where you are in US, 3~4,000 a month is not too difficult working 40 hr/wk as a bookkeeper.
Home-based business is another matter. It depends on your ability to attract clients. Each small biz account should net you at least 100/month. If you attract biz with 10 or more employees, 5~20 clients should give you 3~4k a month.
becoming affiliated with your CPA friends would be nice. just try to establish a partnership with other CPA and you can ride their name to what their worth. it may sound bad at first but hey think about the money you can have… ha ha ha…