Job Opportunities for An Accounting Graduate

There are many job opportunity available for an accounting graduate. Every business unit, either profit oriented or non profit oriented, either small business or big multinational company, either corporate or proprietorship, needs the accountants. Even then, many profession choices are available for an accountant. We can choose.

Here are the opportunities that are available for an accounting graduate.

• Public Accountant.
• Internal Auditor.
• Management Accountant
• Lecturer in Accounting Department
• Business Consultant, especially in the information system development area.
• Provider of accounting outsource services
• Tax Consultant
• Government Officer
• Writer
• Accounting Book’s Editor
  

Public Accountant
Prime responsibility of a public accountant is an auditing service. A public accountant is an external auditor with a responsibility to audit financial statement of a company. S/he will evaluate if the financial statement already prepared fairly according to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Then, they will give opinion based on the audit evidence. To be reserved as a public accountant, an accounting graduate should pass by an examination to get a license to practice as a certified public accountant (CPA). Many CPA work independently as a single proprietor. Many others work for public accounting firms.

Internal Auditor
Internal auditor is an auditor that work for a company. Their responsibility is to make sure that accounting data is recorded correctly to guarantee the reliability of financial statement prepared. In line with that task, they have to make sure that internal control structure is well done, to minimize deliberate error, unintentional error and fraud in the company that can disturb the reliability of financial information. Good internal control structure will also help internal auditor make sure the efficiency and effectiveness of asset usage and operational activity.

Management Accountant
S/he is an accountant that performed many work for his/her company. The responsibility may include:

• Cost Accounting—determining the cost of producing a specific product.
• Budgeting—assisting management in quantifying goals concerning revenues, cost of good sold, and operating expense. S/he can also help management in analyzing the deviation of actual from budget.
• General Accounting—recording daily transaction and preparing financial statement and many internal reports for internal decision maker.
• Accounting Information System—designing both manual and computerized transaction processing system.
• Tax Accounting—preparing tax administration and payment, and also engaging in tax planning.
  

Business Consultant
An accountant has special knowledge about how to record business transactions as a result the data recorded can be used to prepare many information for decision making. More, an accountant is also an expertise in understanding the internal control structure in a company. These competences will be useful in designing and developing information system for business. Thus s/he can choose to be a consultant to help company in developing information system.

Accounting Outsource Services
Many small businesses do not have enough resources to concern with bookkeeping and financial reporting preparation. The owner is already busy with operational system, buy inventory, set the price and serve the big customer. The owner also does not have extra money to hire full accountant to do the accounting job. Then, it is an opportunity that can be picked up by an accountant. S/he can give accounting outsource services.

Tax Consultant
Taxation usually is a difficult and detailed job due to taxation regulation that is established by government body. Thus, not every body has well know-how about taxation. Even, an accountant her/himself has to scrutinize every new regulation to make them up-to-date with the last taxation rule. Thus, this is also an opportunity for an accounting graduate.

Government Officer
The government in my country has a body, we call it Badan Pemeriksa Keuangan (BPK). BPK is an Indonesia government body that has a responsibility over and to manage government fund. Thus, one of the task is auditing the government departments. They need many accountants to do their job. Under Financial Department, one of the government department in my country, there is Direktorat Jenderal Pajak. Direktorat Jenderal Pajak has a responsibility to handling taxation in my country. They also need many accountants to work with taxation administration.

Lecturer in Accounting Department
An accounting graduate who like to read and to do some research can choose to work as a lecturer. There are opportunities to teach accounting course for diploma student, undergraduate student, or informal accounting course. The accountant that chooses this profession has to pursue further study.

Writer
The accountant can write a lecture book, a practical book, a news paper article, a magazine article, or a blog, like what I do. Through writing, all the know-how that is accumulated already in our mind can be poured out.

Accounting Book’s Editor
There are many book publishers. Accountant can work as an editor there, for editing accounting books.