Want to be a successful accountant

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I'm sure this topic comes up quite regularly but I would like for those of you who are actually out and working in the professional world to share your thoughts with me.

I fell off the wagon for a few years in college and decided to finish but won't be leaving with a great GPA and obviously my knowledge is not up to par.

I will be receiving my degree Dec. 17 as soon as I complete Not for Profit & Government Accounting. Between now and then I plan to work through my intermediate, taxation, advanced, cost and auditing textbooks as much as I possibly can / go through my notes and practice problems from these courses.

Things I would like to know from real professionals:

1. What constitutes a "professional", at this point in time I still act like any other college student. I don't speak very articulately, I had a job in an office over the summer and felt quite lost and beneath my bosses when it came to communication skills. I would like to have better interpersonal skills for the world of suits and ties but not sure where to begin, I do not come from a White-collar family so really have no inspiration.

2. I would like to do more then just reread my textbooks again. What websites and publications would you recommend me start reading regularly in order to tune into what real accountants are interested in?

3. What computer software do you use at work, I would like to start learning them inside and out so I don't have to go blind into my first job.

4. My state requires that I have 150 credits before I can become licensed. Does this mean I have to take the extra 30 credits at the university I am currently enrolled or can I take them elsewhere? My school is 100 miles away and I can not afford another year. Does this have to be graduate level MBA courses? I'm really lost in regards to this.

Will it be difficult to land a job not having 150 credits / passed the CPA exam?

5. My math skills are lacking short of the math covered in accounting textbooks which I do not find difficult. Do you ever find yourselves using more advanced math such as that in Calculus or statistics? Should I be relearning my algebra etc?

6. Any recommendations outside of what I have listed? I don't expect to be a partner within a week of being hired, but I want to use this time I have left to prepare myself as much as possible. I get nervous when I feel like I'm ill prepared and I don't want to go in without confidence and end up held back and quiet. I went to school for accounting because I want to be successful and sometime down the road have the money to be able to do the things I really want to do, I don't want to just be just another employee. I want to know how to work my way up and start seeing the big bucks :cool:

Lend me your knowledge!
 

bklynboy

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1. A professional is someone who follows the culture ofthe company they work in and dresses and acts appropriately. Dont come off that you know everything but listen carefully to others and make sure you ask questions if something isnt clear or well understood. Also, dont be insulted by doing menial work but see it as a learning opportunity and a temporary role until you get involved in more deeper roles. To me when hiring new graduates, I expect to see dedication and determination and someone who appreciates and takes an interest in learning new things.

2. Review the FASB and IFRS websites to be on top of all emerging issues and also to refresh your understand of the more technical concepts. There is a lot happenng in accounting and your textbooks are already out of date. Also, each of the Big 4 have updates on their websites so looking at those also helps.

3. Software varies by company but all use Microsoft products (Excel and Access). You should be familiar with them and the formulas that are used. My company also uses query tools to extract data from our source systems so understanding how to write data in SQL against data is also useful. All others you will learn once you work for the comapny.

4. Dont know about this requirement. But passing the CPA exam is not needed to get a job. Personally I think the whole CPA designation is overrated and doesnt mean as much as someone who has a passion to learn, makes improvements to the process and understands the business.

5. Although I do use advanced math skills, most do not and are likely not needed. Certainly calculus isnt but a strong knowledge of algebra and time value concepts is good to have.

6. Success takes time so dont feel you are ready for bigger things. There is a lot to learn and being overconfident is a turn off to employers. Better to show you are eager to learn and contribute and over time your abilities will grow and you will be successful - just dont expect success within a short period of time. Best advice I can give is develop a strong point that is not typical in your firm so that you have an edge over others. For me, I have always integrated technilogical solutions to our processes so beyond simply doing accounting I find ways to make our process better and more efficient which shows up as real dollar expense saves to the Company. Others have become technical accounting experts who are sought out for their opinions, while others are very good at managing projects and getting resources to complete them. Depends on you.
 

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