[Anonymous]

Hello all. I will be finishing up with my Bachelors (Accounting) soon and will be entering a Masters program to fulfill the 150 credit hour requirement to sit for the CPA exam. However, my school offers two Accounting related Masters Programs. Accounting and Forensic Accounting.

Any thoughts on which I should go far?

[Peanut]

@BuffaloBeard, Ugh..I think a lot of us are in the same position as you. I fortunately only needed a few more classes to meet my requirement. I thought the same thing as you, “should I take a bunch of random classes, or take the opportunity to take classes that are useful.” At first, I was going to take a bunch of “dummy” classes. In the end, I took classes I thought would be beneficial to my career. Did you look at the difference between the classes you would be taking doing either Accounting or Forensic? The forensic degree might have all general accounting courses you would be taking with either degree–plus more that are specialized. Maybe the forensic degree would benefit you more? If you're going to get your CPA anyway, I wouldn't feel “pigeon holed” if you did choose to gear towards forensics.

AUD 81 (X4) Previous scores 59, 72, 72
REG 80 (X3) Previous scores 59, 60
FAR 75 (X2) Previous score 67
BEC 79 (X2) Previous score 58

[Anonymous]

@Minimorty – Ok, I see what you are saying now.

My parents paid for my first 3 years, and I am paying for my Senior year and extra courses. I will probably have $15-20k of loans when I graduate and enter the workforce. However, I do have a house that is nearly paid off and 2 cars that are paid off so I am in good shape otherwise.

One thing I am finding interesting; I am surveying the local accounting job market and I am seeing a lot of openings but all positions want at least 3 years of experience. How does a recent grad land a new job without any experience?

[Anonymous]

@Peanut – yes, no matter what I do (MBA, MSA, Forensic) I will be getting my CPA. That is my ultimate goal!

[Minimorty]

@Buffalo – Sounds like you are in a position to handle the $15k-$20k in debt (assuming you are able to find a job). I am not saying this is the case with you, but in general I have also noticed a little bit of a disconnect between what jobs recent grads expect to land and what jobs recent grads should actually be looking for. Even though job candidates may have a graduate degree, these candidates are still ENTRY LEVEL employees. As Jeff mentioned above, graduate school generally makes more sense after you have had about 5 years of experience in the real world. If you do undergrad and then grad, you still dont have any work experience, so you need to be looking for entry level positions.

[Anonymous]

@Minimorty – Thanks for all of the information. What entry level position would a recent graduate with a Masters in Forensic Accounting be looking at? And by entry level, do you also mean very low salary? (less than 30k)

[Peanut]

@BuffaloBeard, I think the entry level salary depends where you live.. What state are you in?

AUD 81 (X4) Previous scores 59, 72, 72
REG 80 (X3) Previous scores 59, 60
FAR 75 (X2) Previous score 67
BEC 79 (X2) Previous score 58

[Minimorty]

So, I'm assuming you'll be like 22-25 years old, right?

Forensic accounting is pretty broad. Do you want to go into auditing? Tax? Family law? Valuation? Bankruptcy? There are a ton of options out there. It also depends on where you live (city vs. rural). With a masters in forensics an entry level position should get you at least 45k and probably a bit higher. 30k sounds really, really low.

btw – How do you have a house and cars almost paid off? Do you have work experience?

[Anonymous]

Also, just doing a quick job listings search, it seems that Forensic Accountants tend to make a tad more. I'm seeing a lit of listings for Forensic Accountants between $75,000 and $110,000 per year.

[Peanut]

@BuffaloBeard, I've noticed forensic accountants make more too. I'm trying to get in a few years of auditing in at a big 4, then work my way into forensics/fraud investigation

AUD 81 (X4) Previous scores 59, 72, 72
REG 80 (X3) Previous scores 59, 60
FAR 75 (X2) Previous score 67
BEC 79 (X2) Previous score 58

[Anonymous]

@Peanut – Check out the US database for jobs. The SEC has a TON of Accountant job openings and I was stunned by the pay.

For example, Forensic Accountant positions within the SEC, required 4 years of experience start at $79,000 and go up to over $170,000. 4 years of experience in the public sector will get you about $45-55,000 from what I have seen on Craigslist.

[Anonymous]

@Minimorty – I will be 25 years old when I graduate with my Masters degree if all goes well.

House – I fell in love with a beautiful woman whose father bought her a house for her 21st birthday. Pretty rad, huh? Well, actually he paid for almost all of it. There is still $20,000 left on the mortgage but thats nothing. And my car is 4 years old so the loan is paid off.

As far as a focus – i'm not sure. I wish I had the answers. This is a lot of information that I didn't expect to have to think about. It's funny how naive we can be at times.

[Anonymous]

Oh, I live in Upstate NY (around Buffalo).

[Minimorty]

@Buffalo – Good deal! Btw – Your father-in-law (or soon-to-be) might have some decent connections. Networking is the key to success. It's all about who you know. All you need is an opportunity and it will be up to you to make the best of it. Try something out and see if you like it. If you dont like it, move on to the next thing. you'll figure out what you like and dont like pretty quickly. Definitely dont be afraid of entry level positions though. All you need is an in.

[Anonymous]

@minimorty- I was not in any way implying that I want a quick fix and a quick name just by getting degrees and the CPA passed. And obviously it's not about getting a name to make the big money right off the bat or else I wouldn't even be thinking about going back to school and spending another year without real experience. I know that it takes starting out entry level and working my way up…but as I said before I graduated from a small school with no recruitment there and for me going to get my Master's may be a chance to get in entry level- on top of actually having a background in Forensic Accounting. I realize that people can work in forensic accounting with just a CPA and a degree but you have to actually get the job first to be able to work your way up…and I have not had any luck with that which is why going back to school has become an option for me in hopes of getting recruited.

[Anonymous]

@Cole – Are you saying that with only your Bachelors degree, it has been tough for you to find any entry level jobs?

[Author]

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