Fifteen Tips for Studying Accounting By Fr. Thomas Conway, O.F.M., C.P.A., Ph.D. 1. The sequence is intentional.

Keep in mind that the accounting course that you are ta ing is one in a se!uence o" courses. #t has $een p%aced where it is $ecause that course&s materia% is deri'ed "rom materia% "rom one or more ear%ier courses. Ma e sure that you ha'e access to te(t$oo s o" your ear%ier courses. )#" you&re a %itt%e $it inc%ined to ta e courses out o" order, "orget it*+ The material within a given course is often sequential. This is especia%%y true o" Accounting # )ACCT-,..+. That is, the materia% co'ered ear%y in the course is necessary to do pro$%ems co'ered %ater in the course. #" you don&t understand the "irst "ew chapters o" the te(t$oo , you need to go $ac and study those chapters $e"ore going on to %ater ones. Determine the scope of the course. #t&s not unusua% "or particu%ar chapters or particu%ar sections o" chapters to $e de%eted "rom the scope o" a course. Practice, practice, practice. There is tremendous 'a%ue in going o'er as many pro$%ems as you can. You re trying to learn as many points as you can. #" you get stuc on a particu%ar point, don&t spend a %ong time trying to %oo it up or "igure it out. Ma e a note o" it and as a "riend or the pro"essor a$out it %ater. !ovels are meant to "e read from "eginning to end. Accounting te#t"oo$s are not. 3 im the te(t, use the inde(, 4ump around, read the !uestions at the end o" the chapter, %oo at ta$%es and charts, cross-re"erence things, and notice the section headings. 5ou&re dea%ing with technica% %anguage6 it&s not unusua% to ha'e to read a gi'en paragraph se'era% times $e"ore you understand it. %e re not in &ansas anymore. #n a history c%ass, i" you now 8.9 o" the in"ormation a$out each presidency, war, historica% mo'ement, etc., then you&%% pro$a$%y $e "ine. #n accounting, you o"ten ha'e to now how to "inishthe pro$%em. This is especia%%y true "or mu%tip%e-choice e(ams. For this reason, it&s o"ten $etter to comp%ete%y understand some pro$%ems )and not now how to do other pro$%ems+ than to ha'e a somewhat 'ague notion o" how to approach e'ery type o" pro$%em. A%so, ha'ing a strong understanding o" one type o" pro$%em wi%% sometimes gi'e you a c%ue as to how to approach a seeming%y unre%ated pro$%em that you ne'er studied. Sorry to disappoint you, "ut accounting isn t e#actly li$e math. #n math, the ru%es tend to $e a$so%ute. #n accounting, many o" the ru%es ha'e e(ceptions and o"ten the ;"ina% answer; )"or e(amp%e, a recommendation to a company+ depends a great dea% on the conte(t o" the pro$%em. 'ut wait, currency doesn t come in negative denominations. <et in the ha$it o" as ing yourse%" i" your "ina% answer ma es sense in the conte(t o" the pro$%em. Find a partner. 3pend part o" your study time $y yourse%" and part o" your study time with someone e%se. A portion o" the study time $y yourse%" can $e used to identi"y what things you understand and what things you don&t. 5ou and your study partner can trade notes on this and teach each other. 3tudies ha'e shown that $y teaching others you ensure that you wi%% reca%% the in"ormation %ater. The most important ru%e a$out wor ing with someone e%se6 eep to the tas * =or hard to eep to the su$4ect at hand. #nterrupt your partner when he>she starts ta% ing a$out unre%ated topics. (earn the voca"ulary. There is no !uic er tip-o"" to the pro"essor that you don&t now what you&re doing than using termino%ogy inappropriate%y. )For e(amp%e, the c%ue%ess student wi%% typica%%y sprin %e the term ;money; %i$era%%y throughout an essay whi%e accounting te(t$oo s se%dom use the term.+ Most accounting te(t$oo s ha'e at %east one g%ossary. A%so, most te(t$oo s put the ey terms in $o%d"ace type. Do enough reading o" the te(t$oo s to understand how the author uses each important term. Don t "e fatalistic. 5es, accounting is di""icu%t. 5es, accounting is hard wor . 5es, it ta es time. ?o, it&s not impossi$%e. Most good students report ha'ing some $rea through moments6 times when sudden%y a range o" topics sudden%y ma e sense. 5ou might $e c%oser than you thin to ha'ing one o" those $rea throughs.

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Develop a sense of curiosity. There are many ru%es in accounting which seem at "irst to $e either contradictory or counterintuiti'e or $oth. Try to "igure out why the ru%e e(ists and ta% to other peop%e a$out it. The rea%%y good students treat accounting as one $ig pu@@%e-game which they e(pect to win* 10. Ta$e some satisfaction in the fact that you re doing something difficult. A'en though accounting is a 'ery mar eta$%e s i%%, that&s not the $est reason to study it. The $est reason to study accounting is that it he%ps de'e%op your a$i%ity to do ana%ytic thin ing. 11. 'ad things happen. #" nothing e%se moti'ates you to study, remind yourse%" that it&s 'ery possi$%e to get a ;D; or an ;F; in an accounting course. This worst-case scenario p%ays itse%" out "or some students e'ery semester. Bse this "act as moti'ation when you are de$ating whether to study accounting or to go out "or pi@@a.

Accounting is a popular major, yet given the preposterous misconceptions out there regarding coursework and the profession, its a wonder how any student considering accounting could possibly know what to expect. Here are 7 things every current and prospective accounting student should know. . !ositive "ob #utlook for Accountants and Auditors Demand for accountants and auditors will be favorable in the coming decade. Driven by a wide array of factors, employment of accountants is expected to grow by 16% between 2012 and 2020. s the economy recovers from the financial crisis, the number of businesses nationwide will increase, which will create opportunities for accountants to !eep boo!s, prepare taxes, and perform audits. s a response to accounting scandals at several large corporations, "ongress passed several pieces of legislation that contain more stringent financial reporting re#uirements, another factor spurring $ob growth for accountants. %he proliferation of international business has also amplified demand for accounting services. $. Alphabet %oup of &ertifications %here are a number of accounting certifications that demonstrate professional credibility and commitment in a highly competitive $ob mar!et. &arning an accounting certification often increases compensation and enhances the probability of a coveted promotion. 'elow is a list of common designations although the "( stands alone the most reputable #ualification an accountant can earn. "( s must pass a rigorous examination that consists of four sections) auditing and attestation, business environment and concepts, financial accounting and reporting, and regulation. "( * "ertified (ublic ccountant "+ * "ertified +anagement ccountant ", * "ertified ,nternal uditor "-&* "ertified -raud &xaminer ",. * "ertified ,nformation .ystems uditor

"' * "ertified 'an! uditor "/ (* "ertified /overnment

uditing (rofessional

'. %alaries (iffer (ublic accounting firms provide audit, tax, and advisory services for businesses, individuals, governments, and nonprofit organi0ations. (ublic accounting salaries depend on three factors) firm si0e, professional certifications, and level of education. %here are currently 1 firms that dominate the public accounting sector, creating an oligopoly for large company audit services. 2nown as the 'ig -our, (ricewaterhouse"oopers, Deloitte, 2(+/, and &rnst 3 4oung combined in 2011 to earn 5106.6 billion in revenues. 'elow are the salary ranges for public accountants with 1*6 years of experience. ,ndividuals with graduate degrees and7or professional certifications such as the "( generally earn 10 percent more. .mall -irm) 518,890*560,900 +edium -irm) 596,000*568,290 :arge -irm) 59;,890*589,290 (rivate and industry accountants perform internal accounting tas!s for a company. private accountant may act as an company<s internal auditor by reviewing and verifying financial statements, policies, and internal controls. =ften times, top management positions such as "hief -inancial =fficer are filled with candidates who have earned a degree in accounting. 'elow are the salary ranges for private and industry accountants with 1*6 years of experience. .mall "ompany) 56>,890*592,890 :arge "ompany) 518,290*568,290 &ntry level salaries for government accounting positions averaged 569,686 ?federal@ and 566,226 ?state and local@. ). &areers #utside !ublic Accounting bac!ground in accounting expands opportunities more than any other business ma$or. 4ou might have heard the proverbial saying, A ccounting is the language of business.B ,t is true that the s!ill set of a talented accountant transfers to a myriad of different fields. "ountless career options are available in entertainment, sports, government, criminal investigation, health care, management, and more. *. Accounting is a (ifficult +ajor common misconception is that accounting students en$oy and utili0e heavy doses of mathematics. %his could not be further from the truth. Chile it is true that a basic !nowledge of arithmetic and algebra is essential, the math used in accounting is not roc!et science.

Chat ma!es accounting a difficult ma$or is the application of rules and analytical reasoning. .uccessful accounting students learn several rules and concepts and then determine how complex, ambiguous information fits into the framewor!. %he best accounting students and professionals have aptitudes in distinguishing between pertinent and irrelevant information. s is the case with most real*world business problems, "( and accounting exam #uestions have multiple answers that are correct. Dowever, one answer is right to a greater degree than the others. %he attrition rate in accounting programs is generally higher than other business ma$ors. %here<s a reason for this) accounting is a challenging ma$or. ,. -rades +atter ccounting and overall /( s below a 6.6 will li!ely preclude students from an interview with the 'ig -our and top consulting firms. ,f you are seriously considering a career with these firms, wor! hard in the classroom and !eep your grades up. 7. &ourse .ork and &!A /e0uirements %he undergraduate accounting curriculum varies slightly at each school, but you can expect at least two introductory courses in financial and cost accounting, one course in tax, two courses in intermediate financial accounting, an accounting information systems course, an auditing course, and an intermediate cost accounting course. ,n order to ta!e the "( exam in 1> states ?Delaware is the exception@, students must complete 190 hours of college credit. %he exact curriculum differs by state. ,n 2ansas, to be eligible for the "( exam, students are re#uired to complete 11 credit hours of oral and written communications, 2 business law courses, and 60 credit hours of accounting coursewor!.