[Anonymous]

I read that the amount of people entering accounting and getting accounting degrees are going up but the number of CPA is at a stand still, the 150 credit hours and the fact the test was so hard before is part of the problem. I also read that the average CPA is like 45-55 years old and as many as possibly half of all CPAs will retire in the next 10 years. The number of people going into accounting dropped tremendously during the dot com boom and bust apparently and the SOX act has caused the demand to spike way higher than supply.

With all that said why are accountants so over worked and underpaid then? If there is such a high demand for them it seems like CPAs should be making a lot of money and be able to work the amount of hours they want.

[Anonymous]

hey, may you please post the source?

i'd like to read it as well out of curiosity!

[Anonymous]

hey, may you please post the source?

i'd like to read it as well out of curiosity!

[LatinoTurkCPA]

Good, more bread for me once I get this CPA thing done.

F: 76 8/31/13 Wiley Test Bank
A: 77 11/4/13 Wiley Test Bank
R
B

MBA 06/2012 - ?

[LatinoTurkCPA]

Good, more bread for me once I get this CPA thing done.

F: 76 8/31/13 Wiley Test Bank
A: 77 11/4/13 Wiley Test Bank
R
B

MBA 06/2012 - ?

[Not a Quitter]

As for your last sentence I think it has something to do with the unemployment rate. There are a lot of CPAs out there looking for jobs (even older. more experienced ones) and will take what they can get. Employers are taking advantage of this. Just my two cents.

FAR- 85 I'm DONE!
BEC- 75
REG- 60,60,75
AUD- 74,74,83

CPAExcel used for BEC, AUD, REG
Exam Matrix used for FAR plus NINJA Blitz, cpareviewforfree and a little CPAExcel

[Not a Quitter]

As for your last sentence I think it has something to do with the unemployment rate. There are a lot of CPAs out there looking for jobs (even older. more experienced ones) and will take what they can get. Employers are taking advantage of this. Just my two cents.

FAR- 85 I'm DONE!
BEC- 75
REG- 60,60,75
AUD- 74,74,83

CPAExcel used for BEC, AUD, REG
Exam Matrix used for FAR plus NINJA Blitz, cpareviewforfree and a little CPAExcel

[mla1169]

Sounds like you read an opinion piece rather than one based in fact. There's no upcoming mass exodus of retirees, in fact people are working well past the traditional retirement age as very few people are financially prepared to live 25+ years on their retirement fund. As for overworked and underpaid, the supply or lack of qualified CPA's doesn't seem to be a factor. Makes business sense-why pay 2 people (plus benefits) to do what one person is physically capable of doing. So long as firms have 5, 10 or more people applying for each available position the person who wins the job is supposed to feel endebted to their new “master”.

FAR- 77
AUD -49, 71, 84
REG -56,75!
BEC -75

Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

[mla1169]

Sounds like you read an opinion piece rather than one based in fact. There's no upcoming mass exodus of retirees, in fact people are working well past the traditional retirement age as very few people are financially prepared to live 25+ years on their retirement fund. As for overworked and underpaid, the supply or lack of qualified CPA's doesn't seem to be a factor. Makes business sense-why pay 2 people (plus benefits) to do what one person is physically capable of doing. So long as firms have 5, 10 or more people applying for each available position the person who wins the job is supposed to feel endebted to their new “master”.

FAR- 77
AUD -49, 71, 84
REG -56,75!
BEC -75

Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

[Study Monk]

The demand for CPA's is high but the supply is low making CPA's over worked. We also live in America during one of the most profit driven times in our history. It doesn't help that public accounting firms have been over working their employees since the 1920's. Universities produce potential CPA candidates and these firms grab them and bleed them out until there is nothing left.

All the money goes to the partners, managers, and senior accountants resilient enough to go through the abuse and the firms get to profit by the high turnover of the lower level staff accountants quitting all of the time. In reality the public accounting industry would be a great if the partners didn't take on more clients than they can handle with their employees working 50 hours a week. It is ridiculous that some firms work people 60 and 70 hour work weeks.

Moreover the Big 4, which are the most guilty, have convinced us that they are the best places to work because 0.0000000001 percent of their employees go on to be CFO's at places like Walmart. Once you get the job of CFO you can then freak out about maximizing shareholder value until they replace you with someone better or who is ready to make the unethical choices. Its funny really. On the flip side most of America is making under $32,000 year so maybe new public accountants should toughen up. I was kind of in a cynical mood so this comment has mainly been for my enjoyment.

I spoke to an ancient wise man who sent me on a mushroom induced journey through an ancient forest to find the key to passing the CPA exam. A talking spider monkey told me to throw the last of my drinking water in the dirt to find what I was looking for. So I followed his instructions and the following message appeared in the soil:

"Do 5000 multiple choice questions for each section"

[Study Monk]

The demand for CPA's is high but the supply is low making CPA's over worked. We also live in America during one of the most profit driven times in our history. It doesn't help that public accounting firms have been over working their employees since the 1920's. Universities produce potential CPA candidates and these firms grab them and bleed them out until there is nothing left.

All the money goes to the partners, managers, and senior accountants resilient enough to go through the abuse and the firms get to profit by the high turnover of the lower level staff accountants quitting all of the time. In reality the public accounting industry would be a great if the partners didn't take on more clients than they can handle with their employees working 50 hours a week. It is ridiculous that some firms work people 60 and 70 hour work weeks.

Moreover the Big 4, which are the most guilty, have convinced us that they are the best places to work because 0.0000000001 percent of their employees go on to be CFO's at places like Walmart. Once you get the job of CFO you can then freak out about maximizing shareholder value until they replace you with someone better or who is ready to make the unethical choices. Its funny really. On the flip side most of America is making under $32,000 year so maybe new public accountants should toughen up. I was kind of in a cynical mood so this comment has mainly been for my enjoyment.

I spoke to an ancient wise man who sent me on a mushroom induced journey through an ancient forest to find the key to passing the CPA exam. A talking spider monkey told me to throw the last of my drinking water in the dirt to find what I was looking for. So I followed his instructions and the following message appeared in the soil:

"Do 5000 multiple choice questions for each section"

[tough_kitty]

Study Monk, I enjoyed reading your comment 🙂 makes me feel even happier about my state job and higher salary and no more than 40 hrs work week 🙂

FAR: 81 (May 2013)
BEC: 81 (July 2013)
REG: 83 (August 2013)
AUD: 82 (November 2013)
California CPA since 1/30/14

[tough_kitty]

Study Monk, I enjoyed reading your comment 🙂 makes me feel even happier about my state job and higher salary and no more than 40 hrs work week 🙂

FAR: 81 (May 2013)
BEC: 81 (July 2013)
REG: 83 (August 2013)
AUD: 82 (November 2013)
California CPA since 1/30/14

[LatinoTurkCPA]

Honestly, I don't see this lack of job candidates. When my company posts a job, they get hundreds of applicants, to which the hr filters and sends a few.

The main real complaint seems to be that they cannot find candidates with the exact specific experience background and kills that they want to see.

F: 76 8/31/13 Wiley Test Bank
A: 77 11/4/13 Wiley Test Bank
R
B

MBA 06/2012 - ?

[LatinoTurkCPA]

Honestly, I don't see this lack of job candidates. When my company posts a job, they get hundreds of applicants, to which the hr filters and sends a few.

The main real complaint seems to be that they cannot find candidates with the exact specific experience background and kills that they want to see.

F: 76 8/31/13 Wiley Test Bank
A: 77 11/4/13 Wiley Test Bank
R
B

MBA 06/2012 - ?

[Anonymous]

CPA's will probably be making 200,000-800,000 a year based on other factors in the future. They are the only ones with salaries that are immune to this depression. That may change however because usually when the wealth disparity reaches a certain point systems tend to collapse.

[Author]

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