Accounting, finance roles see demand throughout industries

For those who are good with numbers and seek minimal educational training, there are plenty of jobs to be had in accounting and finance staff positions.

As the number of organizations increases and financial regulations become stricter, there will be greater demand for these workers to maintain books and provide accounting services. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks is projected to grow 11 percent from 2012 to 2022, about as fast as the average for all occupations.

Both full-time and contract positions are widely available; about one in four worked part time in 2012. The median annual wage for bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks was $35,170 in May 2012.

Bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks work in offices and may do site visits. Workers in this occupation have a wide range of tasks; some are full-charge bookkeeping clerks who maintain an entire organization’s books, while others work as accounting clerks who handle specific tasks. The records these staffers work with include expenditures (money spent), receipts (money that comes in), accounts payable (bills to be paid), accounts receivable (invoices, or what other people owe the organization), and profit and loss (a report that shows the organization’s financial health).

Basic mathematics skills are a must in these positions. Clerks must be comfortable using computers to record and calculate data, as they mainly enter information from receipts or bills into computers, and the information is then stored electronically. As organizations continue to use computers for their financial records, many clerks are required to use specialized accounting software, spreadsheets and databases.

Houston Community College offers an accounting certificate, an associate accounting degree, a Level 1 payroll specialist certificate and a forensic accountant enhanced skills certificate.

These programs provide students with occupational and technical instruction, continuing education, college-parallel courses, professional assistance and resources for learning.

HCC’s programs will prepare students for careers as paraprofessionals in accounting firms, assisting certified public accountants as generalists who prepare taxes, perform audits and prepare financial statements.

The accounting program is offered at all five colleges: Southwest, Central, Northwest, Northeast and Southeast. Students complete their internships and co-op education courses with public accounting firms or non-profit organizations, and some go on to start their own accounting firms.

“Increasingly, HCC sees unemployed and employed adults returning for re-training to upgrade their skills in accounting and the latest technology such as QuickBooks, TurboTax, etc.,” said Dr. Marina Grau, accounting department chair, HCC-Southwest. “Graduates from HCC’s degree plans have a 100 percent placement rate.”

Lone Star College‘s Montgomery campus also offers a two-semester accounting certificate, a two-year associate degree program to prepare candidates for these entry-level staff positions and an advanced technical certificate for students who have a bachelor’s degree and need additional courses to take their certified public accountant (CPA) exam.

Additionally, Lone Star offers courses that would transfer to a four-year degree program; it has an agreement in place withSam Houston State University in which students can take lower-level courses at Lone Star and then transfer and begin with their junior year at SHSU.

“No matter what your business is, you need an accountant, whether you’re a small business owner or a large company,” said Madeline Brogan, department chair for accounting at Lone Star’s Montgomery campus. “Not everyone is talented in accounting, but if you are, employment prospects are going to be really good.”

For HCC information, visit www.hccs.edu. For Lone Star details, visit online at www.lonestar.edu.”