[Anonymous]

Hey everyone, I have a simple yet complicated question. For years I’ve known that I want to be a CPA, and my dad also thinks it’s a great idea as it opens a ton of more doors, but I don’t necessarily want to be in public accounting. I know I need my experience (I’m in NJ), but other than that, I want to get out of public ASAP and get into industry.

My question is, is it worth it to obtain my CPA if I don’t plan on working in public, or will it actually be worthwhile for private jobs? What kind of jobs can I get with a CPA as opposed to just a regular accountant?

[I just love this]

Start your research with Google.com

REG- Waiting 7/1/13
BEC- Waiting 7/23/13
AUD- Studying 8/12/13
FAR- Signed up 10/1/13
Studying with CPAExcel and Wiley Test Bank.

[Anonymous]

I was hoping for a slightly less snarky answer, but thanks. I've done my research, but I trust people on here who have been through it all before.

[smyoung0521]

I will be interested to see what replies you get as well. It is my assumption that it will also help to get jobs with private industries as well. I know when I was looking for a job most of the ones that I was interested in had a CPA preferred. What kind of work are you interested in doing?

Restarting my journey!
Using Rogers and supplementing with Ninja

[Mel]

I'm kinda in the same boat as you because i do not plan to work in public nor am I working there now. But i think being a CPA is valuable for me because it carries more clout than just my undergrad. I'm hoping it takes me somewhere else and opens more doors for me as i progress in my career. I also would like to open my own tax practice and do some consulting (maybe later on in my career). I know being a CPA is required for most companies if you want to be an Assistant Controller or greater.

For Example, i was looking for a side gig doing bookeeping or something and one company i talked to said, “Everything on your resume is what we are looking for but i just wish you were a CPA.” Now i'm sure i could have done the work, but that CPA designation carried more weight than my resume alone.

[mla1169]

never worked in public, never will. Got my CPA as an older candidate and it made a HUGE difference in the types of jobs people were willing to interview me for.

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

Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

[Anonymous]

I'm in public, but have noticed that non-public companies have “CPA Preferred” on a lot of job postings. So yea, I think it's worth it.

[Anonymous]

From many in the industry that I have spoken with, a CPA hold as much (if not more) water than an MBA from a non-target school. I don't know about you, but I know plenty of unemployed MBAs who have their degree granted from a middle tier state school yet I know very few unemployed CPAs with only an undergraduate degree.

Go for the CPA, it will take 2-3 years of your life (depending on your study time and work experience) and it will provide you with a credential for the rest of your life. And as for costs, even if you purchase the best study material and fail a few tests you will have less than $5k invested; how much did your bachelors degree cost? 🙂

[Anonymous]

Thanks everyone! I needed a little more reassurance that I'm not losing my mind for nothing.

[CPApracticer]

mla1169: why never will work in public?

F: 54 (4/13) 60 (4/14) 67 (9/14) 66 (10/14) 63 (11/15) 79 (2/16) PASSED
A: 60 (5/13) 80 (4/16) PASSED
R: 60 (7/13) 61 (2/15) 70 (4/15) 77 (7/15) PASSED
B: (6/16)

[Anonymous]

College professors teaching accounting classes must be a CPA.

[uglyowl]

Amordiva,

It is certainly school dependent, but many schools do not require a CPA to teach an accounting class. From what I have seen is they put more weight into having a doctorate than a CPA. This may change though with a huge shortage of PhD's in this area. That being said, a CPA certainly helps.

BEC : 07/28/2012 (89)
FAR : 10/29/2012 (86)
AUD : February 2013 (80)
REG : 05/22/2013 (80)

[acamp]

Think of public as super experience, generally speaking when starting at entry level, the career level and opportunities after x years of public accounting will exceed the career level and opportunities after x years in private–even more so if you cannot obtain a CPA without public experience in your state as some positions may require a CPA license and/or public experience.

Further, I've seen plenty of clients with accounting staff who've been with a company forever, working under a manager who was hired from the outside with a CPA and Public Experience.

I browse the job ads occasionally to remind myself what its all about, when I come across listings with things like “CPA Required” or “Big 4 Preferred” lol

Ninja + Wiley Test Bank: [FAR - 81] [REG - 76] [BEC - 88] [AUD - 73](doh!)

Becker Videos: [AUD - 82]

California CPA

[Mayo]

CPA is definitely helpful outside a public accounting career. Go for it.

Mayo, BBA, Macc

[Author]

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