...Becoming a Certified Public Accountant Dwaine Holmes Eng 315 Professor Giewont August 23, 2011 INTRODUCTION I am writing this paper to find out the proper steps it takes to become a certified public accountant (CPA). I have just received my associate’s degree in business administration with minor in accounting. I am looking to start my career in accounting, so I wanted to know what are the qualifications and procedures that are needed to become a successful CPA. There are different ranks in accounting, with CPA being the highest. With that being said, I needed more information on whether I needed the certification. The basic job description of an accountant is make sure financial records are correct and true. They also have to make sure taxes are paid by state and federal guidelines. PROBLEM STATEMENT Becoming an accountant is a very hard job to achieve. It takes a lot of dedication and schooling to make it happen. In order to become an accountant, you have to obtain certification in the State you are trying to work in. Each state has its own requirements that are made up by a state board of accountancy. Therefore, trying to get licensed in Virginia may be different in another state. There are four main levels of accounting, which are public, management, and government accounting. Internal auditing is the fourth. They all do the same job, but you may be limited on what you can do as an accountant. This is very important to know if you are...
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...that accountants have an understanding of all aspects of the business and they are able to identify any possible act of fraud or misrepresentation of figures in a business financial balance. Accountants...
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...that a forensic accountant needs to possess and evaluate the need for each skill. Be sure to include discussion regarding the relationship between the skill and its application to business operations. As the annual price tag for fraud at American business soars to nearly $1 trillion, the demand for Certified Public Accountants that provide forensic accounting services has increased exponentially- a spike that appears in no danger of waning over the next several years. (Carlino, 2010) With the demand for forensic accounting services increasing, it is very beneficial for prospective employers and employees to know what skills are needed to fulfill the duties of this very important occupation in today’s society. “Forensic accounting encompasses collecting, analyzing, and evaluating evidence, and the interpreting and communicating the findings in courts, boardrooms or other venues.” (Carlino, 2010) There are numerous skills needed for these positions but five skills are vital in becoming am effective forensic accountant. The most essential skill needed to become an effective forensic accountant is included in the description of the position. One has to be very analytical in their profession in order to become efficient and effective. Being a problem solver in any business is a trait that no business wants lacking from their employees, but in the field of finance and accounting, employers cannot successfully hire accountants without the skill of being analytical. Since...
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...Management Accountants Aileen Davey Adrian France* *Waikato Institute of Technology (Wintec) Tristram Street Private Bag 3036 Hamilton 2020 New Zealand Telephone: (07) 8348800 ext 8519 Fax: (07) 8348802 Email: Adrian.france@wintec.ac.nz Abstract In New Zealand there have been a number of articles about the changing profile of accountants in today’s environment. Recent debate is focusing on the goal congruence of educators and practitioners. Professional accounting bodies are also identifying the changing needs of the accounting professionals’ skill sets as a key area of future focus irrespective of what job title the accounting professionals operates under. This paper seeks to identify the key skills and characteristics of management accountants which are being looked for by employers in today’s market. Situations vacant for management accountants were surveyed. The results indicated that communication skills were advertised the most frequently, marginally ahead of technical skills. Of the Characteristics leadership was most frequently advertised. The survey in this paper confirmed the practitioners actions in situations vacant advertising are congruent with their requirements profiled as essential skills in potential employees, today’s students. Keywords: Skills, characteristics, management accountant, situations vacant, advertising. Advertised Skills and Characteristics of Management Accountants Boer...
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...Forensic Accounting in Practice: Forensic Accountants: Fraud Busters A forensic accountant is part investigator, part auditor, part attorney, and part accountant (Levanti, T.). Due to the increase in high-profile cases of companies and individuals, forensic accounting is a growing and popular field in the business and forensic subjects. A forensic accountant is someone who is often retained to analyze, interpret, summarize, interviews and present complex financial and business related issues in a manner that is both understandable and properly supported (Zysman, A.). Forensic accountants usually work in a public practice or are employed by insurance companies, banks, police or government agencies. They are to investigate and analyze any financial evidence, communicate their findings in reports or documents and assist in legal proceedings, such as testifying in court as an expert witness (Zysman, A.). Determine the most important five (5) skills that a forensic accountant needs to possess and evaluate the need for each skill. Be sure to include discussion regarding the relationship between the skill and its application to business operations. I think the five most important skills that a forensic accountant needs to posses are to be: (1) analytical, (2) detail-oriented, (3) ethical, (4) responsive, and (5) insightful (Davis, Farrell & Ogilby). Analytical The need to be analytical in a forensic accounting engagement may be the most important overall characteristic, without...
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...demand for forensic accountants. The Association of Certified Examiners said that occupational fraud losses cost organizations on the average of about a trillion dollars yearly. I feel with this being a known fact brings along the push for the services of these forensic accountants. Forensic accounting is a profession in which combines investigative skills with accounting, auditing, and consulting to conduct investigations. Investigations which involve forensic accountants range from embezzlement at small retail business to a widespread of government corruption. When companies are yearly losing about a trillion dollars to fraud losses I feel that is a main reason as to why there was an explosion in this field. With this explosion taking place of forensic accountants, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) formed a committee called the Certified Financial Forensics (CFF) in which was planned to award 900 credentials by the end of 2008. In was said that by the end of 2009 the AICPA rewarded 3,500 CFF certifications. Through research and the readings, I think it is simple to say that no one ever wanted to see a repeat such as the Enron and WorldCom scams. I came to find that through the readings that the marketplace in which requires forensic accountant’s posses a complete different skill set then those of traditional accountants. There are three essential traits in which forensic accountants should posses. The traits were being analytical, detail...
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...that a forensic accountant needs to possess and evaluate the need for each skill. Be sure to include discussion regarding the relationship between the skill and its application to business operations. A study conducted by two professors from Rider College interviewed over 150 lawyers, Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) and accounting educators. The study identified sixteen skills needed by forensic accountants. According to the study, the five most important skills are analytical skills, basic accounting skills, problem solving skills, data analysis skills and interviewing skills (McMullen & Sanchez, 2010). Forensic accountants need analytical skills because as they review financial reports and other source documents, they need to analyze the validity of each transaction and determine if the company recorded the transaction fairly. The forensic accountant needs the ability to analyze where the data came from and whether the data accurately reflects the numbers posted in the financial reports (McIntosh, n.d.). With an in house forensic accountant, this will ensure the company’s financial state is accurately reflected while an independent forensic accountant can verify the accuracy of the reports, both of which help investors determine if the company is worth investing in. “Accounting is widely regarded as the language of business” (McMullen and Sanchez, 2010, pg.1). As such, the need for basic accounting skills is self-evident, for a forensic accountant to be able to...
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...standards at its core Forensic accounting goes above and beyond what the auditor does. Crumbley (2009) contends that a forensic accountant may take on fraud auditing engagements but will use other accounting, consulting and legal skills to broaden their engagements. The discipline of forensic accounting is being utilized not only in a courtroom setting but also in public discussions, debates, civil matters like divorces, insurance companies, banks and the business community at large. From a general perspective forensic accounting focuses on digging into the final accounts but will follow a lead into records of original entries. These accountants cover the areas of litigation support and investigative accounting. They are seeking out the cause and effect and according to the article FTB Tax Services (2011) it states that the primary orientation of forensic accounting is the explanatory analysis of phenomena- including possibly the discovery of deception, and its effect- introduced into an accounting system domain. The article further pointed out that the primary methodology employed by forensic accountants is objective verification. One can reasonably agree that forensic accounting engagements venture beyond the mere accuracy of numbers but rather detecting what flaw that might exist in the picture as a whole. According to Joshi (2004) the term “Forensic Accountant” was coined by Maurice E. Peloubet...
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...Eldridge May 19, 2013 Forensic Accounting 2 1. Determine the most important five (5) skills that a forensic accountant needs to possess and evaluate the need for each skill. Be sure to include discussion regarding the relationship between the skill and its application to business operations. One of the most essential skills is being analytical. Forensic accountants must make sure that they are in a position to uncover financial deceptions by critically analyzing them with an understanding of fraud schemes. A forensic accountant is deductive analysis or the ability to take a shot at the financial contradictions that are not a normal pattern of the company to uncover potential financial fraud. Being analytical is essential to remaining an effective forensic accountant. They need to be able to analyze the validity of each transaction the company recorded to make sure that the transactions were reported accurately and fairly. They must possess the knowledge and expertise to interpret financial statements or work under situations where information has been either destroyed or tampered with and be analytical and put the pieces of the puzzle back together again. Forensic accountants should be detailed orientated. Being a forensic accountant means that you will be looking at large quantities of numbers from supporting documents and various financial reports. Being detail orientated you would compare the numbers and the documents and identify any inconsistences within the reports...
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...become an accountant. General accounting and bookkeeping classes can be taken in high school. In college, the student needs to decide on a more specific field of accounting. An accountant has many choices as to what particular field of accounting to specialize in depending on the financial information she wants to analyze and how it is done. Financial accountants, tax accountants and internal auditors are all accountants in general, but require different training and work methods. A financial accountant records economic data and periodically prepares reports that show profit and other financial information of a company using the generally accepted accounting principles. The reports prepared by the accountant are useful for managers, and also for owners, creditors and the public. Based on information in the reports the public can use the reports to choose a company to invest in. Because a financial accountant is employed by an individual company, she is considered a private accountant. Another type of accountant is a tax accountant. A tax accountant prepares yearly tax returns for individual clients. The accountants have to use constant data such as rates of pay and other information to determine the proper amount of taxes to be paid. These accountants have to take a class once a year to catch up on yearly changes in tax laws and regulations. If a tax accountant has met state experience requirements, she may want to take exams to become a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). ...
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...(Institute of Certified Managment Accountants, 2009, p. 1) The CMA exam is made up of different components that test the skills an accountant or another individual in the finance field would use on the job including financial planning, analysis, control, and decision support. (Institute of Certified Managment Accountants, 2009, p. 1) There are numerous requirements for taking the CMA exam, as well as to maintain your CMA certificate but they are only mediocre compared to the benefits the Certified Management Accountant Certificate can do for you. The CMA exam is administered, developed and graded by the Board of Regents of the Institute of Certified Management Accountants. (Institute of Certified Managment Accountants, 2009, p. 2) The Board of Regents also has the responsibility to evaluate and validate the CMA applications to make sure they have meant all the requirements to be a CMA. (Institute of Certified Managment Accountants, 2009, p. 2) To be eligible to take the CMA exam you much first become a member of the IMA and pay an entrance fee, $200 for regular members but only $75.00 for any students. (Institute of Certified Managment Accountants, 2009, p. 3) Once a member of IMA the Board of Regents will make sure that you have a Bachelors Degree from an accredited university, if the degree is not from an accredited university it could be accepted but only after being evaluated by an independent agency. (Institute of Certified Managment Accountants, 2009, p. 3) Candidates for the...
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...funds. The Fraternity has been in existence since the Fall of 1956. Our chapter is among the largest and strongest active fraternities at Arizona State University and our philanthropic events are much appreciated throughout the community. Despite such success, it has been brought to my attention that we have been facing financial difficulties over the past several semesters, and I believe that with some assistance, we will struggle no more. I am proposing the professional service of an accountant to assist our Treasurer. The addition of this third party service will provide the Fraternity with a checks and balances system as well as professional documentation of all fraternity funds available to the all brothers. The accountant will not use Fraternity funds for personal use and will implement a sense of security among the Fraternity that will entice more brothers to pay their full amount of dues. I have been in contact with several CPA firms in the area. Hiring an accountant isn’t cheap; however, it will save the Fraternity money over time and instill faith in the system for...
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...roles as an accountant and the importance of having an accountant especially when business are involved. Introduction The definition of Accounting is basically a person that keeps track and puts in order a business’s financial records to help that business know if they are gaining or losing money so that the business may continue successfully. Accounting is the process of identifying, measuring, and communicating economic information to permit informed judgments and decisions (I, 10/1/2012) The primary objectives of accounting consists of an accountant (bookkeeper) keeping track of a company’s debits and credits, without this feature for a company there would not be any way for a company to know whether or not they are gaining or losing money (Instructor, 2002-2005)! Therefore, an accountant will gather information from the company which consists of their total income that has been brought in as well as receipts for everything the company has bought to determine the debit that the company has spent. After the accountant has gathered all of this information, the accountant can than determine the company’s equity rather or not they are losing money or gaining money (Instructor, 2002-2005). There are fourteen different steps when dealing with accounting process. Fist the accountant must gather the information from the business and be able to recognize the information (Internet Center for Management and Business Administration, 2002-2010). Second the accountant must prepare...
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...ETHICS AND THE ROLE OF ACCOUNTANTS According to (Finn, 1994) ethical behaviour is a base which is required in the accounting profession to provide a proper and professional service to a client who just relies on the information provided by the accountant. This helps to build a reputation and in as well in the eyes of the client that the accountant is reliable and adds to their degree of trustworthiness for the client. The reason it has become so important to monitor the ethical behaviour of accountants is because of the recent scandals by corporate and accounting firms like Enron and WorldCom as mentioned by (Chan, 2006). It was further mentioned that ethical problems are a part of any business due to the interaction of the accountants with so many people with different interests that it leads to conflict of interests. Many different people have different views about ethics. The basic meaning of ethics is the authority of custom and tradition (Svensson, 2003). It was further stated that ethics is more of a mix of philosophical thoughts over a period of time as compared to being a fixed concept and each culture has its own norm of what is acceptable and what is not. Another view point by (Duska, 2011) stated that ethics is related to analysing what is right in the eyes of the person and the law. It consists of a set of moral principles that vary between individuals that distinguish between good or bad. While some of the ethical behaviour is implied, the professional framework...
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...Certified Public Accountants’ Responsibility to Clients and the Profession Abstract The professional responsibilities of a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) to their clients were investigated. The responsibilities were determined by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Code of Professional Conduct. Specifically, Rule 102 regarding integrity and objectivity was used to determine what constituted as integrity and objectivity in the practice of a CPA acting as the moral conscience of their client. Rule 301 was used to determine whether information should be disclosed in the instance of fraud. Based on the information in the code of professional conduct, it was determined that CPAs have a responsibility for the greater public interest in determining the appropriate actions to be taken regarding potential fraud. Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) providing services such as accounting, taxation, audit, attestation, and other related services have a responsibility to serve small businesses as a moral conscience. Small businesses are focused on growing their business. As a result, the small business has big dreams. Many times the owners of small businesses are good at doing the service they perform; however, they often prefer that licensed professionals oversee the accounting function. Although CPAs have a responsibility to their clients they are not to act as the moral conscience, rather, they should act as a moral conscience, CPAs should turn in...
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