Is It Hard to Learn Accounting?
When you enjoy working with numbers, accounting can be a highly rewarding career. Unfortunately, certain myths and misconceptions about being an accountant might make you hesitant to pursue this career. The following information can help you learn what accounting is really like and why it can be a great career path. Keep the following myths and the truth behind them in mind while thinking about your career options.
1. Accountants Only Do Taxes
With tax season being a busy time for accountants, you might think that taxes are all they do. However, accountants have plenty of tasks and responsibilities that keep them busy all year long. Whether you work for a company or run your own accounting business, doing taxes is only one of the responsibilities you can expect. Your employer or your clients will have you prepare company taxes during tax time, but you might also have other tax-related tasks to handle at other times. For example, you might need to gather documents if your company or a client is audited. You’ll also need to keep up to date on changes to tax laws and regulations that could affect your company or your clients.
Being able to prepare taxes is one of the skills you’ll learn in order to become an accountant, but you’ll also learn to handle several other financial tasks. Keep in mind that you can choose to focus on or specialize in preparing taxes and handling other tax-related matters as an accountant if you run your own accounting business. However, many accountants handle a wider range of tasks in addition to tax preparation.
2. Accounting Isn’t Important
The myth that accounting isn’t important goes hand in hand with the myth about accountants only doing taxes. This misconception can lead business owners to believe they don’t really need to hire an accountant. However, these business owners often find that their company does much better with an accountant on board. Accountants can make it easier for companies to have their taxes done, while also providing business owners with essential information on their company’s financial situation. Without an accountant, business owners might find themselves putting too much toward expenses and not enough on increasing revenue.
Accounting provides a dependable way for companies to keep track of their finances and make improvements or adjustments as needed. As an accountant, you’ll be doing your part in helping companies or clients thrive and continue being in business. With the right skills and training, accountants are a valuable investment for companies. Keep this in mind when you hear someone mention the myth about accounting not being important.
3. Accounting Is Too Hard
This myth about accounting often comes from those who don’t have an interest in this type of work. The thought of having to spend workdays doing calculations and running numbers might seem intimidating for those who don’t have strong math skills. The truth is that accounting isn’t difficult to learn when you have an interest in this type of career and a talent for math. When you are in a degree program for accounting, you can expect to take courses in different aspects of this career, such as economics, finance, cost management, and business statistics. You’ll also learn about different types of accounting, such as tax accounting and financial accounting.
If you’re eager to learn the principals of accounting and develop the right skills, this career path isn’t a hard one to tackle. After completing your degree program, you’ll have the knowledge needed for the various responsibilities and tasks that accountants have, from preparing taxes to doing basic bookkeeping and evaluating company finances.
4. Accounting Is Boring
An old misconception about accounting is that it’s a boring career choice. While those who don’t like math might find accounting dull, those who love working with numbers can make an exciting career out of it. Accounting is about more than running numbers and doing calculations. Working with these numbers isn’t just about putting your math skills to use. Keep in mind that all of the calculations and other tasks you do as an accountant are an important part of making sure your company or your clients are able to maintain good financial health and stay in business.
As an accountant, those numbers you come up with provide you with a way to make essential assessments about businesses. With your accounting skills, you can identify potential issues with the way companies or clients are running their business. You can use your calculations to give clients or your employer a better picture of their business’ financial health and come up with ideas for how to improve, such as cutting back on certain expenses or finding ways to increase profits.
5. Accounting Is Just Bookkeeping
A common misconception about accounting is that it’s really just bookkeeping. Although bookkeeping is a basic part of accounting, it isn’t the only task you’ll be doing in this career. Bookkeeping involves keeping track of expenses and revenue for a company, which is an essential part of keeping businesses in good financial health. This is an important skill to learn in order to become an accountant. However, accountants do a lot more than handle bookkeeping.
When you work as an accountant, you can expect to handle a wide range of tasks related to your company’s finances, such as examining financial documents and statements for accuracy and ensuring financial statements are in compliance with regulations and laws. You’ll also be responsible for evaluating your company’s financial operations in order to make improvements as needed. Other tasks that accountants often do include determining ways for companies to reduce costs and increase revenue, preparing tax returns, and identifying possible fraud risks. Keep in mind that you can also specialize as an accountant, such as focusing on risk management. You can also work as an accountant for a specific industry, such as healthcare or insurance, where your tasks will involve much more than bookkeeping.
How Hard is it to Learn Accounting?
Now that you’re familiar with common misconceptions about accounting, you might feel more comfortable choosing this as your profession. If you decide to become an accountant, make sure you find a high-quality degree program in accounting, so you can get your career off to a good start. Once you have your accounting degree, you can focus on building a solid career where you’ll be able to put your hard-earned skills to good use.
If you are interested in learning more about the
Bachelor of Arts in Accounting offered at Wilmington College Cincinnati, request information today!
