To become a California CPA, you must be licensed by the state licensing board, pass the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination (EXCP) and have at least a bachelor’s degree in accounting or related field and work experience.
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If you love numbers, want to help people and have a penchant for accounting, think about becoming a California certified public accountant. The process of training to become a California CPA requires education and practical experience, but offers myriad job opportunities in fields ranging from finance and bookkeeping to information technology and insurance.
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The average salary of a Certified Public Accountant is $94,930 per year, $46.34 per hour. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, salaries for accountants and auditors of public accounting firms will increase by 8% between 2014 -2024 and then decline at an annual rate of 0.2%.
What Do Certified Public Accountants Do?
Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) are licensed professionals who provide accounting, auditing and tax services to individual clients or companies. Many CPAs review clients’ financial records in order to prepare and file tax returns, while others handle legal documents associated with clients’ finances. Some CPAs may work as forensic accountants, reviewing potentially illegal financial actions and situations, such as breached contracts, embezzlement and fraud.
The table below outlines the general requirements to become a certified public accountant.
| Degree Required | Bachelor’s degree |
| Education Field of Study | Accounting |
| Key Skills | Analytical skills, communication skills, detail oriented, math skills, organization |
| Certification Required | Must pass CPA exam from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) |
| Job Growth (2020-2030) | 7% (for all accountants and auditors)* |
| Mean Annual Salary (2020) | $81,660 (for all accountants and auditors)* |
Source: *U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
What Are the Duties of a Certified Public Accountant (CPA)?
Your duties as a CPA will vary somewhat depending on your employer. If you work for an accounting firm or directly for a company, your main duty will be to prepare and maintain numerically accurate accounting reports from financial statements, transaction records and other sources of information. You’ll also analyze a business organization’s revenue and costs, identify trends, project future profitability, present comprehensive reports on your findings to administrators, and offer advice on tax planning and employee compensation.
At an independent accounting firm or as a self-employed consultant, you might conduct independent audits or assist with the development, implementation or modification of an organization’s accounting system. With a law enforcement agency, your work could take on a forensic dimension, wherein you’d investigate embezzlement, bankruptcies and securities fraud. In this capacity, you have to testify in court as an expert witness.
Where Do Professionals Work?
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), over 1.3 million people worked as accountants and auditors in 2020 (www.bls.gov). The majority worked for accounting, bookkeeping, payroll and tax preparation services. Lesser but significant numbers worked for local and state governments and insurance carriers. Around five percent were self-employed. Together, these represent your most likely employment options. The BLS projects employment will increase 7% to about 96,000 between 2020-2030. Growth in the total number of business organizations and the needs of businesses to manage their finances and comply with disclosure laws will drive the demand for accountants.
Finding a cpa job with high salary can be a challenging thing to do. There are many factors that you have to consider before being able to land a high salary accounting job. This article will help you in settling your desire of having a high paying cpa job and help you find the best possible choices for you. The first and most important thing that you have to do is to thoroughly research about careers in accounting. If you are not aware about what the different career levels for accountants are, then you should research about it.
