Why Certification is Important.

If you are serious about pursuing a career in accounting, auditing, process improvement, etc, getting certified is critical for your future growth. Certification is your gold-plated credentials. Citing certification on your resume makes you stand out and is a clear indication that you are a capable, smart person who is serious about this line of work.

Certification is important whether you plan to make career of public accounting or if you are just working in the field for a few years to gain valuable experience for whatever comes next. The big four relentlessly push their employees to obtain certification and it is a big factor in awarding promotions, especially at the senior level. Certification is usually required for promotion to Manager. Getting your certification as a staff will make you stand out and bring positive attention to yourself. The firms love certification because it is the sort of information that is shared with clients to show them that their "team" is well qualified.

What certification should you pursue? Well, it depends on your background and what direction you want to take your career. There are many choices:

Certified Public Accountant (CPA) - The hardest to obtain and the most valuable. If you have the stamina, get this certification. It will take serious dedication, studying, and putting your social life on hold for a while. It is the best all around certification and will make you stand out like no other certificate. Required certification is you want to work in senior management in an accounting or finance role.

Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) - Great certification if you want to work in internal audit.

Certified Information Sercurity Auditor (CISA) - IT equivalent of the CIA. Required for those who want to work as IT Auditors.

Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) - Good certification to make you stand out a bit if you want to work in a Risk Management role.

There are lots of other certifications, all worth considering depending on the career direction you want to take. A specialized certification will open doors in terms of employment opportunities and access to organizations. See the following web site for a nice list of certifications relevant to accountants: http://wserver.scc.losrios.edu/~burbagg/CPALinks.html

Getting a Job in the Big 4

Most new hires are hired directly out of college. Experienced hires are used to plug gaps and are almost exclusively used to fill higher level positions (senior and above). There is a typical progression that is followed and most new hires join the firm as a Staff 1.

It is important at this point that I stress that it is difficult to get a job with the Big 4. They are very selective and end up hiring very few of the people who submit resumes. My experience has been that less than one in thirty students interviewed are hired. This varies wildly based on the job market and the local office resource needs.

There are a number of ways to dramatically increase your chances of getting a job offer. I will cover this in my upcoming posts.

Email Your Questions to Me

Please feel free to email your questions to me about your current or future career in public accounting. I will tell you like it is, no holds barred. Email at michaelkaizar @ gmail.com.