When choosing a career path as a young person, the most important thing is to choose the correct subjects upfront. You do not have to do accounting in high school in order to be an accountant. In fact, it is better not to do accounting in school as the school syllabus is not really accounting but book- keeping.
To be successful in accounting you need to be able to solve problems. As you progress through university, the learning revolves around how you solve certain everyday issues that you would come across in a business environment. Therefore, Mathematics and Science are key subjects that teach one how to approach and solve a problem in a logical and systematic. I would therefore recommend that you make these 2 subjects’ part of your high school life in order to have as many options as possible, after matric.
A career in accounting can be very rewarding and exciting. Most of the Chief Executive Officer’s in listed companies are accountants. If the world of business excites you then being an accountant is the best possible route to take you to your destination. As an accountant you get an eagle’s view of the business and can then slot into any part of the business that excites you, should you want to move beyond accounting. You can even start your own business and make a success of it.
You must be prepared to work hard very hard. There is the 3-year B Comm. degree then honours or B Acc degree which takes 4 years. Then you have to enroll traineeship with a firm of accountants or a company that provides training. The training is usually 3 years and during the 3 years you need to pass 2 board exams. It takes a minimum of 7 years to qualify as an accountant but once you do, the world is your oyster.
Zakhe Khuzwayo is Chief Operations Officer at Innovent
