If you are in your final year of study, this is likely to be a question that you are beginning to contemplate. While a qualification in accounting does probably mean that you are looking at a career dealing with numbers of one form or another, it would be a huge mistake to assume that this means that once you graduate all you have to look forward to is a life chained to a desk and a calculator.
If that happens to be your idea of a dream career, brilliant. Go for it, and no doubt you will be highly successful. For those who find that idea unsettling at best, let’s look at some ways of avoiding that nightmare and making sure that you put your qualification to use in a way that you find truly rewarding.
Look at your interests
This is likely to be the best advice. Everyone is different, and what works for some people would be horrible for others. This is important as multiple studies have shown that the working environment and the culture of the company you end up working for matter far more than the type of job you go into, at least in terms of long-term happiness.
You will be much more likely to find a good fit in a company which works in an area that you are already interested in. So don’t just jump at the first job you are offered. Really think about how well you will fit in before you make that decision.
Don’t want to be an accountant?
What if, now you have finally completed your qualification – or are close to it – you don’t actually want to be an accountant at all? Thankfully, there are many career options open to you which will allow you to apply the practical skills that your qualification has given you. These include:
• Market analysis
• Real estate
• Management
• Statistics
• Media
• Hospitality
• Corporate training
Those examples are just the tip of the iceberg. If you don’t want to be an accountant, your qualification will still open many doors for you in a very wide range of areas.
People who have graduated with skill in accounting have gained a vast array of truly valuable skills which apply across a huge range of career options. Remember, employers don’t hire degrees, they hire people. If you can demonstrate that you have everything it takes in order to truly excel in a particular role, no one will care that you have a qualification in accounting instead of business management.
