All posts by eileenaandy

Why Accounting is the BEST Major Ever

While many of us experience frustration that comes along with pursuing your MPA, we often disregard the prospects that the major provide to its graduates. Below are some of the benefits I believe only accounting majors have the privilege of enjoying:

  • High Demand in the Workforce – whether you are planning on working in public accounting (Big 4 or otherwise) or industry accounting, there are limitless opportunities in the workforce for accounting graduates.
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  • Wealth of Opportunities– have you ever wished you worked for Google or Apple? Accountants can easily attain job positions in the most selective companies after attaining just a few years of public accounting experience.
  • Flexibility in Concentrations – when people think of accounting, they always seem to think about debits and credits. However, the accounting major consists of many different concentrations/ tracks (as our program provides) to cater to all different preferences.
  • Reasonable and Stable Salary – while working in the accounting industry can have quite the crazy hours, the salaries that accountants receive for their services is pretty fair and stable. In addition, accountants often receive year-end and CPA bonuses that are not readily available for other jobs and majors.

“The grass is always greener on the other side”, is a statement that none of us can deny, especially during the toils and hardships of exams and projects. However, let’s remember that just being part of the best accounting program in the nation is nothing short of a blessing. Cheers!

Black Friday Hacks

When it comes to Black Friday, the question on everyone’s minds seem to be “where and when should I shop?”. The crowd can be insane but the excitement of shopping for something seemingly “low priced” may compensate for all the craziness.


 

Below are a few hacks you can do to make your Black Friday experience smoother.

  • Save up WAYYY before Black Friday. When it comes to Black Friday, you must save up more than what you intend to spend. Maybe you thought you were going to buy an iPad, and that’s it. But when you enter the store, and see a heavily-discounted TV or other products, it would help to have the extra cash ready.
  • Research on pre-Black Friday sales. Some online sites offer Black Friday-ish sales a week or two before Black Friday. At this point, sizes are still plenty and the demand for the products has not risen exponentially. What a great time to be ahead!
  • Shop 2-3 days before Black Friday. The sales would have started in most stores, but the crowd has not arrived.
  • Go to stores with less crowds. Austin is a great place to be since it’s a smaller city. To those of you thinking of going to Houston or Dallas, you might want to rethink that decision. More crowded areas tend to be crazier this time of the year.
  • Have fun and be rational. If you use a credit card, remember your limit.

Black Friday is meant to be a fun-filled experience, but remember that it is also the weekend of Thanksgiving, so don’t forget to give thanks and be courteous.

Applying for the CPA

Almost all of us in the MPA program would probably end up taking the CPA exams at one point or another — some of us sooner while others later.

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My experience taking the CPA for the very first time was nothing short of exhausting. However, I figured that the following tips would be applicable to all of taking the CPAs soon or later:

  1. Apply early. The Board of Accountancy can take a few weeks to process your application. It is fine to start your application even before your Bachelor’s completion shows up on your transcript, because they will need to process your data before doing anything else.
  2. Apply for review courses. I used Becker, and they were nothing but helpful to preparing me for the CPA. The courses are long, and workload is tremendous, but I can assure you that it will all be worth it.
  3. Select your dates as soon as you can. When you finally receive your Notice to Schedule, remember to do so ASAP!! The good days and times will run out in a heartbeat. Who would want to be stuck in peak hour traffic right before the exam?
  4. Do not procrastinate. Preparing for the CPA requires a minimum of 15 hours per module (a minimum of 5 modules per exam). So it is in your best interest to get them all done in steps, rather than cramming 75 hours worth of work in a few days.

With all that said, to all of you taking the CPAs. Good luck!