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I am one semester away from completing my A.A.S. in Accounting, with the goal of working as an Accounting Clerk. I'm not sure if I should continue on toward a B.S., other than perhaps to be more competitive in the job market. Whether I want to go directly into the job market or continue on toward a B.S., I really can't start until fall 2016, when my youngest kid starts school. I've been an at-home mom for 9 years, but I worked as a bookkeeper before then, and I currently do some bookkeeping for a CPA. Since I'm going to have a year of downtime until the little one starts school, I'm coming up with ideas to create internships for myself (mostly volunteering payroll and bookkeeping services), so I can keep my skills relevant.
So, with that in mind: between my A.A.S. and work experience, are my job prospects as an accounting clerk good? At 36 years old, I'm not sure time or money are on my side if I want to continue on toward a B.S., and getting back into the workforce sooner rather than later is my main priority.
I would continue on for the B.S. for the following reasons:
1) Most job postings these days require a B.S. at the minimum.
2) Yes, with the flood of undergrad degrees lately, the market is more competitive than ever. And it's probably going to keep getting worse. Why make your uphill battle that much steeper?
3) You say you still have two years left anyway.
4) You will have the option of becoming a CPA later and moving up into an even higher pay tier.
I understand the pressure to get to work when you're a bit older than other fresh grads. But I don't think you are too old yet. But if you want a more quantitative justification, just figure out how much higher you expect your average salary to be (accounting for the higher unemployment rate for the A.A.S.) and multiply it by the number of years you plan to work before retirement. If this number is greater than your college expenses, then you should go.
Thank you! When I'm looking at college expenses, I'm looking more in terms of lost income. I've been very fortunate so far that my degree hasn't cost me anything yet, between financial aid (it pays to be poor!) and my academic scholarship.
I suppose I could try to find work, and then go back for my B.S, if the prospects aren't that great. I wish there were more options for reputable online colleges.
Thank you! When I'm looking at college expenses, I'm looking more in terms of lost income. I've been very fortunate so far that my degree hasn't cost me anything yet, between financial aid (it pays to be poor!) and my academic scholarship.
I suppose I could try to find work, and then go back for my B.S, if the prospects aren't that great. I wish there were more options for reputable online colleges.
You can figure out your job prospects now. Just make up a resume with the credentials you expect to have when you finish your A.A.S. and submit it to a bunch of companies that you would like to work for. And then see if you get any interviews. You can even go to a few interviews and see if you get any offers.
Then you'll know for sure. No information on the internet will answer your question better than that.
I agree it's worthwhile to test the current market. Submitting a resume with an anticipated degree and degree date is fairly common practice in most fields.
I tend to advise people thinking about a BS in accounting (particularly moving up from an AAS) to have some sense of what particularly area in accounting interests you. An AAS is typically book-keeping focused. If you're just getting a BS to flush out your book-keeping, personally I don't see as much value in that.
But if you really want to move into auditing, or become a CPA, or management accounting, then a BS (or even a MAcc) can have added value, and would pretty much be required to go anywhere in your field. Whereas if you planned to stay in bookkeeping but wanted to open up working in a medical facility, you might benefit more from a few classes from your current CC medical coding or a survey in medical operations/business (though as a non-degree student you might lose aid, but could pick up a class here and there whilst working).
You know, it occurred to me: maybe a good compromise would be to take a part-time bookkeeping job, and continue working on my B.S. at the same time. That way I'll have at least some income, but I'd be working toward the next step. If I can find a good online program, that would help because then I won't have to worry about paying for after-school care for my 3 kids.
My husband thinks I should just continue with my little Ebay business, instead of getting a job outside of the home, but I'm not sure how well that would look on a resume...
You know, it occurred to me: maybe a good compromise would be to take a part-time bookkeeping job, and continue working on my B.S. at the same time. That way I'll have at least some income, but I'd be working toward the next step. If I can find a good online program, that would help because then I won't have to worry about paying for after-school care for my 3 kids.
My husband thinks I should just continue with my little Ebay business, instead of getting a job outside of the home, but I'm not sure how well that would look on a resume...
Depends on how you market yourself on a resume in part, and also how you're using your EBay business to actually develop skills.
If you manage $100k in gross product (even if your net is low), you can spin that pretty well on a resume. You manage inventory, you're presumably instituting some sort of market research and price evaluation to determine what to sell and what margins to seek.
If you're just selling $20 a month in tchotchkes (even if it's 100% profit), then yes, that will be pretty hard to spin on a resume.
I would say the former is a closer description. I inherited a good portion of the inventory from my deceased step-father's store; it's mostly vintage license plates, vintage comic books and records, antique stock certificates. Plus I've hit the jack pot a few times, with random thrift store finds. It definitely fall under the category of tchotchke, but there is a niche for it. I do keep inventory, research the value of each item, strategise my selling based on the item, do the taxes for the business, etc. Volume-wise it's feast or famine. I've been doing this for 6 years, and my monthly sales can range from $100-$1,000. I keep my Ebay store open during summer, but during the school year I usually limit myself to a few auctions per week.
I would go for the part time option and continue the degree. Perhaps there is an accelerated degree program in the area that would be more at home/on line than seat time in a classroom? Check with some of the major universities in your state and see if there are adult continuing education programs or adult learner programs. I know of several in the states of PA & MI that have these, catering to the non traditional or "older" student. Many only require one day per 6 weeks of personal time; either the beginning of a course or to sit for the exam at the end of the course.
You might also want to check out jobs/positions with companies that might pay or reimburse you for continuing education. Accounts payable/accounting clerks/payroll/general ledger positions in schools and hospitals often hire with the AA or AS degree and they pay a certain percentage or certain amount towards degree completion.
Good luck, you are in a great field for advancement, don't let the age be the deterrent.
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