There’s no point sticking to a career that you don’t love; instead, you can master numeric, technical, and soft skills to get an accounting or tax job that you love. A career in accounting is not just a high salary but a respectable profession.
You need to gain education, skills, and knowledge to join an interview with an accountant recruiter at 123Financials and find a role in the industry. They will help you identify the current job market for accounting and tax professionals.
Reasons why to choose a career in accounting/tax
There is a common myth that accountancy is all about numerical skills. Though you must have good numerical ability, it’s not just crunching numbers when we are standing in a tech era. The software can automate the processes, so if you are tech-savvy, have basic education, work environment skills, and have analytical strength, you can become an accountant.
Reasons for becoming an accountant can be:
- You get an opportunity to work in almost any industry.
- Accountants are high in demand, so you have several job opportunities.
- Accountancy is pretty close to 100% recession-proof.
- You can spend time advising people, solving problems, and achieving business goals.
- Accountants get attractive salaries.
- There are plenty of growth opportunities for accountants and tax advisors.
Accountancy allows you to become your own boss by running your bookkeeping business and becoming self-employed. You can set up a home office with minimum overhead cost and provide attractive services to clients. Additionally, you get flexible working hours which means you have a great work and life balance.
Tips to get an accounting/tax job
An accountant is responsible for managing all the financial activities of an organization. However, they can specialize in one particular domain like tax. These are tax accountants who mainly focus on personal and corporate tax accounting.
1. Completing your qualifications
Though accounting is not legally protected, anyone who crunches numbers can call themselves an accountant; having a degree brings the ball to your court.
With an essential AAT qualification, you can have an AAT Level 2 Foundation Certificate in Accounting, which allows you to find jobs. However, an AAT Level 4 Professional Diploma in Accounting can bring several opportunities under your belt.
A professional qualification can improve your finding ideal roles in firms.
Some of the popular accountant qualifications are:
- AAT or Association of Technicians accounting courses comprise all qualifications across three levels. It also provides an accountant with industry knowledge and practical work skills.
- ACCA or Association of Chartered Certified Accountants qualification comprises fundamental and professional levels. The topics here mainly cover corporate and business law to audit and assurance.
- AIA or Association of International Accountants’ professional qualification offers you a qualified accountant status and allows you to become a member of the AIA global organization.
- ICAEW (Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales) or ACA comprises 450 days of practical work experience upon completing 15 exam modules and offers chartered accountant status.
- CIMA (Chartered Institute of Management Accountants) provides you with a business finance award that oversees the widely recognised CGMA or Chartered Global Management Accountant status.
2. Choosing your specialization
There are several areas in accountancy; therefore, you need to choose a specialism or a topic that fascinates you, such as financial, forensic, cost, tax, investment, staff accounting, project accounting, etc.
However, accounting careers can be subdivided into mainly two areas: financial accounting and management accounting, and others are their subdivisions.
Choosing a specialization can be tricky but see which accounting department you enjoy spending time in the most. Now, if you want a career as a tax accountant, you need to focus on taxes, prepare and file taxes, how personal and corporate tax are separate, how to calculate tax, etc.
3. Build workplace skills
When we hire an accountant, we expect more than just crunching numbers. Accountants need to communicate well, solve problems, advise on financial decisions, manage teams, etc. Therefore, if you want to get your dream job, you must learn workplace skills, like:
- Time management
- Detailed oriented
- Analytical strength
- Organised
- Communication skills
- Problem-solving ability
- Ethical
- Team management
What’s more? Companies want their accountant to know about the changing government regulations to protect companies from legal issues. Plus, you must have excellent data analytics skill that assists you in analysing data from financial statements and looking for different opportunities or risks. Data analysis in a business is vital for its growth, and it finds out the area to improve while observing the business performance and financial health of the company.
4. Be tech-savvy
With the latest financial tools and software introduction in the market, companies are looking for tech-savvy accountants. They can work with these tools, provide the best results, and advise businesses if they need to get a new tool.
Additionally, you can take some technical courses to learn using the latest software, like advanced Excel, cloud-based software, etc. Why? Because accountants often need to use spreadsheets, word processors and various accounting software to complete their duties efficiently.
5. Land a job in your ideal company
It is pretty difficult for a fresher to land a job in the ideal company. Despite having sufficient qualifications, it is essential to gather real-life accounting knowledge to become established. You can look for a full-time position and your studies to build up the necessary skills.
Maybe, you can try some entry-level jobs like a bookkeeper, payroll administrator, etc. Securing an apprenticeship helps you gain practical skills and earn a wage and receive the same employee benefits as others in the company.
Once you qualify as an accountant, you will be able to look for work in different public and private sectors and small to large companies.
6. Upgrade yourself
You cannot stay static in a dynamic work environment. The accounting industry is evolving every day with new techniques and technology. Therefore, you need to keep up-to-date with every change.
Additionally, you can get a chartered status by completing a professional degree from a recognised chartered accountant body like ACCA, CIMA, and ICAEW. These certifications open the door to your dream companies.
You can also start your own business by reaching out to clients through digital marketing strategies. Create a website that showcases your work, skills, and qualifications. It will act as a CV you submit during a job interview. Clients go through your website to know you and may schedule a face-to-face consultation where you get the best opportunity to show your skills. Running your own business gives you better options and flexible work hours, giving you sufficient time to take some advanced accounting courses or upgrade your skills.
Conclusion
Maybe, you don’t get better opportunities initially but utilise the time to gain experience and prepare yourself for ideal companies.
Regardless of how long the process is to get a job you love, dedication and hard work speak in time. Start looking for internships today if you love numbers and have an analytical brain with basic accounting knowledge.
