Accounting jobs are those found under banking and finance sector. And a career in accountancy is all about helping organisations from small charities, to global businesses and individuals to manage their finances so to comply with relevant legal regulations and plan appropriately for the future.
It’s possible to train and work as an accountant in three main settings: An accountancy firm that provides services to external clients, within finance department of a public sector organisation or a commercial organisation.
Qualification and skills you’d need to work in accounting are numeracy and analytical skills, excellent communication both written and oral and interpersonal skills. Also have time management, organisational skills, commercial awareness, initiative, motivation and team working skills.
While the highs and lows of an accounting job include your accountant title, which can earn you some form of status. And that the job also comes with earning potential, another benefit. As being a Chartered Accountant is considered one of the highest paying jobs in South Africa (SA) average pay is R434 191 per year. Although this isn’t a career for you if you can’t work under pressure, as at certain times of the year it can be hectic such as financial quarterly and year ends.
And as we all know to get a full-time job starting off working in an internship is a good idea to get your foot in the door at one of the firms and gain some experience. This will also help you decide if a career in accounting is right for you. In many cases, people that have completed their internship successfully will be offered jobs for when they complete their education.
While there are plenty of public accounting firms to work for, four of the best continue to be PWC, Deloitte, KPMG, and Ernst and Young. And all these accounting firms are based in Gauteng and usually also hire interns to help during the busy tax season.
And these firms are also considered amongst 2016 Most Attractive Employers in SA. A ranking by Employer branding company Universum as based on the opinion of 21,961 business-commerce and engineering/IT students from 30 universities.