The definition of accounting is bookkeeping: the activity, practice, or profession of maintaining the business records of a person or organization and preparing forms and reports for tax or other financial purposes. In years past, students going into college have not shown much interest in choosing accounting as a major because most of them considered it to be a boring subject with all of its numbers, statistics, and many spreadsheets. Due to recent accounting scandals by companies such as Enron, there has been an increasing demand for accountants and auditors.
A survey taken by Job Outlook in 2005, showed that accounting is the most in-demand major on college campuses.. The new in-thing is cleaning up a company's accounting books. Many accounting teachers and professors are nearing retirement age and their vacancies are hard to fill since there are twice as many accounting faculty openings then suitable applicants to fill them.
In the United States, there are three main classes of accountants: Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), and Certified Management Accountant (CMA). CPAs provide services to the public such as auditing, accounting, litigation, and tax advisory services. CIAs work mainly in auditing for their employers while CMAs work generally for their employers although they may offer some limited services to the public.
In order to become a CPA, you must get a bachelor's accounting degree from a college or university that typically includes 150 credit hours of coursework, and specific courses, usually in financial accounting, managerial accounting, taxation, and auditing.
