How to Become an Accountant in 2027: Degree, Path and First Job

You don’t need to love math to become an accountant. You need patience with detail and a habit of checking your work twice. Most people take the same route: a bachelor’s degree in accounting, an internship, then a first job in audit, tax or corporate accounting. Here is each step.

What Does an Accountant Do?

BLS sums up the job in six duties:

• Check financial statements for accuracy and legal compliance
• Work out taxes, prepare returns and make sure they’re paid on time
• Inspect accounting systems for efficiency and fraud risk
• Keep financial records organized
• Look at how operations run and suggest improvements
• Find ways to cut costs and raise profit

Day to day, you’ll reconcile accounts, prepare reports and answer questions from owners and managers. The title covers a lot of ground, from a staff accountant at a small company to an auditor at a big firm. That means the work feels different depending on where you land. Our accountant salary page shows what it pays.

How to Become an Accountant, Step by Step

1. Earn a bachelor’s degree. BLS lists it as the usual entry education, and an accounting major is the most direct way there.
2. Get hands-on experience. BLS says students can build it through internships with public accounting or business firms.
3. Apply for a first role. Staff accountant, tax associate and audit associate are common places to start.
4. Choose a specialty. After a year or two, you’ll know whether you like tax, audit or corporate work best.
5. Add a credential if it fits your goals. The CPA is the best known, and it’s a separate path.

Short on time? Look at the fastest accounting degrees. If cost matters most, start with the cheapest programs.

Which Accounting Degree Should You Pick?

For most people, a bachelor’s. Compare programs on our bachelor’s in accounting list, which covers programs from business schools. Two examples are offered in an online format. They are Fort Hays State’s Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in accounting and Old Dominion’s Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) in accounting.

BLS also says some employers prefer a master’s, either in accounting or in business administration. You can add one later, and plenty of people work first.

What Does the First Year Look Like?

Your first year is mostly a few tasks you repeat often. You’ll prepare workpapers, test samples of transactions, reconcile accounts and learn the firm’s software. Someone senior reviews everything you do, which is how you learn.

Then busy season shows up. BLS notes that longer hours are common at certain times of year, like quarterly audits or tax season. Expect some late nights before a deadline, and ask about the schedule before you accept an offer.

How Much Do Accountants Make?

BLS reported a median of $83,680 a year for accountants and auditors in May 2025. Where you live matters. New Jersey’s median is $100,830, while Mississippi’s is $68,100. And the top tenth of earners made over $144,090, so there’s room to grow.

What Specialties Can You Choose?

You’ll pick a direction after your first role. Tax accountants prepare returns and plan for clients. Auditors check statements and controls. Corporate accountants work inside a company on costs and reporting. Some people move toward fraud work, which our forensic accountant guide covers.

What Are the Pros and Cons of Being an Accountant?

The pros are easy to point to. The median pay is $83,680, the field has well over a million jobs, and you can work in almost any industry because every organization keeps books. Your skills carry over if you change direction later.

The cons are real too. The work is detail-heavy and deadline-driven, and mistakes have consequences. Busy season takes your evenings. And your first role can feel like data entry with a review layer on top, since you earn trust by getting the basics right.

If you can live with that list, learning how to become an accountant is a good next step.

Can You Switch Into Accounting From Another Career?

Yes, and plenty of people do. The steps are the same, with one twist: you may already have a bachelor’s in something else. In that case, look at master’s programs built for non-accounting majors, or ask a bachelor’s program how many of your credits will transfer. Our master’s in accounting list is a good place to start.

Want to test the work first? A bookkeeping or payroll clerk role only needs some college, according to BLS. Our bookkeeper salary page shows what that pays.

What Is the Job Outlook for Accountants?

BLS expects employment to grow 5 percent from 2025 to 2035, which is faster than average, and that’s 79,400 more jobs. In May 2025, 1,449,500 people worked in the field.

If the license is your goal, read how to become a CPA next. For the first jobs open to new graduates, see our entry level accounting jobs guide.