Your New Career As a CPA

Take a few moments and think of an exciting career. Maybe an occupation with changing surroundings, or the opportunity to be creative. A profession with more options and choices than you ever thought possible. What comes to mind? Acting? Flying planes? Playing football? Those are pretty common answers. But are you thinking of accounting? If you're not, you should be.

Getting your certified public accounting certification can give you unlimited access to very exciting careers. Being a CPA does not mean you'll spend your days crunching numbers at a desk with no room for change. Instead, it means you will have the skills, integrity and knowledge to successfully enter a number of different, challenging professions. So what are some of the most interesting choices?

Environmental Accounting

As laws change and businesses continue to become more involved with the environment and how they affect it, CPAs are playing an important role in environmental audits and corporate environmental programs. They can be responsible for everything from developing systems that monitor a company's effect on the environment, to auditing what those effects have been. CPAs are also often accountable for analyzing what projects and programs will be most cost effective for improving a business' environmental standards. Environmental accounting is an excellent way to combine an interest in science and the environment with your CPA.

International Accounting

Do you love to travel? Do you enjoy learning foreign languages or want to use the one you already know? International accounting can be an exciting career that offers all of these benefits. CPAs in this field have excellent communication skills-often in many languages, and can enjoy learning about businesses and cultures of their clients. Working with companies in different countries, often on different continents, can be an exciting way to see the world and meet new people while playing an important role in the globalization of business.

IT Services

With the Internet's incredible success, accountants have had to become very involved in Information Technology issues. Some CPAs simply use the latest technologies for the best results in their own firm, but many are now consultants for clients or the companies where they are employed, evaluating and designing software programs to manage finances. These specialists have combined the many benefits of being a CPA with the skills of an IT professional to become an essential piece in today's corporate world.

Government Accounting

If you're interested in being a part of politics, your CPA credential can help you get there. Thousands of accountants work for local, state and federal government offices across the country, helping citizens and leaders everyday with financial issues, working on everything from taxes to budgets to fundraising. Some pretty hot topics! Involvement with the government often demands a strong background in political science to compliment the integrity and accounting skills guaranteed with the CPA.

Forensic Accounting

Have you always wanted to stop criminals in their tracks? Forensic accounting may be the field for you. Professionals in this industry investigate financial records and search for evidence of fraud and other illegal activity. It is common for these accountants to work closely with legal departments in solving crimes and working through the litigation process.

These are just a few of the hot areas in accounting today. A CPA can take you just about anywhere-and it's the done the same for many others. Look at Philip Knight, the CEO of Nike. He's a CPA. So is Thomas Pickard, the Assistant Director of the FBI as well as Arthur M. Blank, the President and CEO of Home Depot. It's amazing to think of the success these CPAs have had in such diverse fields. Now imagine all of the places the CPA credential could take you!