Is it easy to get a job in accounting?

Can I get a job as an accounting assistant w/a 2 yr degree?

• I was an Accounting Clerk in the Air Force 1981 to 1983 and then did Admin in the Air Force from 1983-1990. I haven't worked since then, but I'm going back to college now. Should I get my Accounting Assistant Degree or Admin Degree? Could I get a job as an Accounting Assistant Degree? The college told me only 3 out of 10 graduates got a job. I want to make good money, but I'm not ready to get a 4 yr degree. How much will I make starting out?

• Answer:

  There's a glut of accounting clerks on the market. And with a 2-yr degree, you're a clerk, regardless of title inflation. A BA degree is only an assistant - if there are any jobs. If that school can place 3 out of 10 new AA grads, they are doing very well. There's a bigger glut of admin assistants. The typical admin now supports up to 5 people in managerial ranks, 3 execs, or a whole department! Even a Legal Secretary or Legal Admin may support 3 to 5 attorneys. The school is lucky if they can place 1 or 2 admin people per year. Neither are "good money." The way inflation is heating up, you'd be lucky to keep renting a room and eat marginally within a year or two. Clerical workers only make, at the top in high-cost areas, about $20-25/hr. & cannot survive on it. And plenty of places pay $8-10/hr. Peon's peanuts. If you really like accounting work, you need a degree - an MBA + CPA. And there's competition for those jobs, too, but at least you have a better chance.