There are many different types of jobs available to those who have a degree in accounting. Here is a list of the different kinds of accountants. It is based on the kind of work they actually do, not on what they are called. Some common ones include:
- Accounting clerk
- Audit manager
- Controller
- Financial analyst
- Financial auditor
- Internal auditor
- Tax accountants
- Bookkeeper
- Accountant
- Accounts Payable Clerk
Accounting clerk: An entry-level position that requires little experience and includes a lot of data entry.
Audit manager: An accountant who is responsible for auditing companies and making sure they are complying with the law and reporting accurate financial information.
Controller: A high-level accountant who is responsible for taking financial information and using it to make business decisions.
Financial analyst: Someone who analyzes corporate financial reports, often predicting future trends or making recommendations on how to invest money or run the business more efficiently.
Financial auditor: An accountant who reviews corporate records for accuracy, including taxes, employee payroll records, and other documents.
Internal auditor: A top-level accountant within a corporation who oversees day-to-day accounting procedures, including compliance with government regulations.
Tax accountants: Tax accountants review tax returns for individuals, businesses, or organizations.
The most common job for accountants is auditing, and the most common kind of audit is of a business’s income tax return. But there are many other kinds of audits, including audits of the internal controls at companies and audits of their financial statements. All these jobs require accountants to check and certify the financial information that businesses submit to the government.
Auditors also review financial reports that businesses give to shareholders, such as annual reports and forms. They also prepare tax returns for individuals and small businesses. And they sometimes provide consulting advice to people or organizations with accounting problems.
Bookkeeper: This job used to be very common, but now it is becoming rarer. A bookkeeper’s work is to maintain business or financial records. The job requires accuracy and reliability, but not much in the way of formal training. A bookkeeper usually has an associate degree in accounting or bookkeeping.
Accountant: This job involves doing accounting for clients who rely on the accountant’s expertise in figuring out how taxes, accounting standards, and other financial rules apply to them. Accountants can also prepare tax returns for individuals or companies, or help manage their money. Good accountants are often in high demand; they can make lots of money. Accountants need at least a bachelor’s degree in accounting; advanced degrees are required for many jobs in public accounting.
Accounts Payable Clerk: This job involves paying bills for clients who have bought goods or services from the company. It involves checking invoices against purchase orders and making payments when due; sometimes it involves following up with vendors when payments are late. Accounts payable clerks need good math skills and attention to detail, but have little
Accountants perform the financial records of companies and businesses. The details of this job depend on the size of the business and the type of business. Accountants may be employed by government agencies or large corporations or small businesses.
The accountant is a professional who works with numbers and reports on them. The accountant can be both public and private. An accountant in a private company is called a company accountant. An accountant in a public company is a public company accountant.
An accountant has to take care of all the financial records of an organization, including inventory records, purchase records, payroll records, tax records, and other information that might have to be reported to different government agencies. In addition to these tasks, the accountant also advises the business’s management on important financial issues such as whether it would be beneficial to take out a loan or buy new equipment.
The accountant does not have to have any specialized training or education beyond high school. The job does require good math skills and an ability to understand accounting principles and regulations.
An accountant is a professional who prepares and analyzes financial accounts. The job can involve some combination of tax accounting; auditing public companies, individuals, and businesses; and preparing financial statements for internal use by managers.
The accountant’s job is not to tell people how to make their businesses run better. There are plenty of consultants for that. Rather, the accountant’s job is to prepare an objective record of what has already happened inside a business.
Accountants sometimes help their clients reduce taxes by finding ways to report income in more favorable categories or by finding legitimate deductions. But this is secondary: it only happens because the client wants the money in the first place.
An accountant’s job is not to make people pay their taxes. It can be frustrating when people you want to report favorably still manage somehow to take deductions they don’t deserve or evade taxes altogether. But an accountant can’t take responsibility for other people’s behavior any more than a lawyer can accept credit for getting his client acquitted at trial. If you want someone who will help you cheat on your taxes, don’t hire an accountant – hire a lobbyist.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that in 2012, the largest employer of accountants and auditors was the government itself; federal, state, and local governments hired accountants and auditors.
The second-largest employer of accountants and auditors by far was management, scientific, and technical consulting firms.
The third-largest employer was the insurance industry.