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DaveWanders
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Joined: 29 Aug 2012
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Posted: 29 Aug 2012 at 21:07 \| IP Logged

Hello,

I'm trying to decide if pursuing a CPA would be a good
fit for me.

My goal:
I'm hoping to land a position as a financial analyst,
emphasizing on financial statement analysis and
forecasting. I'm not too excited about the Big 4 (and
know they mostly recruit right out of school), but am
certainly open to a career in public accounting.

Is CPA consistent with my near-future career goal? Longer
term I hope to be in treasury/corporate
finance/controller's office of a fortune 500 company.

My situation:
-I graduated in 2010 with a major in finance
(unfortunately, financial analyst jobs favor accounting
or in the case of wall street favor top 15 schools).
-I currently work in an analytical role at an insurance
carrier. I like my job, and I get a well-rounded
exposure to many things like underwriting,
business/financial modeling and programming, but this is
sort of a "into" position in insurance and the actual
typical insurance career paths don't interest me as much
as accounting/financial analysis.

Any opinions?

I know if I decide to pursue CPA, it'll still be a long
road as I'll need more accounting credits before I can
even start the process. But by "near-future" I mean in
the next couple of years.

FARB-FinAudRegB
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Joined: 25 Apr 2009
Location: United States
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Posts: 275

Posted: 29 Aug 2012 at 22:52 \| IP Logged

You need to do some more research to determine how many of today's workers in the position you aspire to attain have the CPA.

Something else that might be more relevant to your goal is the CFA.

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DaveWanders
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Joined: 29 Aug 2012
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Posts: 5

Posted: 29 Aug 2012 at 23:11 \| IP Logged

Thanks for the quick response.

I've found mixed info as to whether a CPA is preferred
for these roles-it seems to be a mixed bag. Some
actually prefer an MBA, or just x years
accounting/finance experience.

I'm certainly researching MACC programs, and the CPA in
general, but my default course of action will be to stay
at my current company for another 6 months to a year or
so (have been there 1 year now) and see if I can lateral
into a financial analyst/corporate finance position. If
it becomes apparent (either by my failure to do so or
overwhelming research) then I'll probably pursue
MACC/CPA.

ebitda
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Joined: 28 Jan 2010
Location: United States
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Posts: 61

Posted: 04 Sep 2012 at 23:46 \| IP Logged

That's a good question. What kind of financial statement analysis/forecasting are you interested in? If you're interested in doing that for purposes of investing (e.g., equity research for an investment bank, independent research firm, or a mutual fund), then you're better off with a CFA, as FARB already mentioned. The CFA is the gold standard when it comes to anything related to investments. If you're interested in doing that on the corporate side (e.g., FP&A roles at a F500 finance department), then a CPA, and to a lesser extent a CMA, is the way to go.

It depends on the company, but you will usually find that most FP&A analysts have a CPA and public accounting experience. The CPA is the most useful designation on the corporate side. It is considered the basis of anything to accounting no matter how little of the material you may actually use on the corporate side. I personally don't think a CMA is that important after getting a CPA, but that might depend on your company's industry. I haven't run into anyone with a CMA in my sector, and no job description that I've read so far requires or even prefers the CMA. On the other hand, I have seen plenty of FP&A job descriptions that say something like "CPA and/or MBA preferred." A CMA can help you stand out from among the CPA-only crowd for FP&A jobs, especially manufacturing companies, so you have that option if you feel you need to go the extra mile, but from my experience, the CPA is priority for anything on the corporate side.

You don't need a MAcc for a CPA. Your other option is to become CPA-eligible using community college or university extension program courses, which can be cheaper. The limitation of those is the lack of on-campus recruiting, however, especially if you want to join a Big Four. You may not need the on-campus recruiting anyway if your current position is relevant to your goals. In that case, see if you can take courses part-time while working, pass your exams once you're CPA-eligible, and then see what's out there. Good luck!

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Virgil
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Joined: 24 Sep 2011
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Posted: 05 Sep 2012 at 07:47 \| IP Logged

Ugh..the CFA sounds like what you're looking for. CPA won't do
enough to help your goals.

Just know what you're getting into with the CFA. Road is long, and I'm
almost burnt out at this point with it. But get it and doors will definitely
open considering your background.

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