What is Accounting?

Accounting or accountancy is what businesses, corporations and governments use to measure, communicate and process financial information. If you are studying for an accountancy degree you will cover areas such as Economics, Taxation, Fraud and Public Finance.

Accounting is not necessarily associated with fun and excitement though--and for some has the reputation of being a rather boring old-fashioned profession. But hey, things have changed since Scrooge’s counting house; there are many fascinating roles in accounting. You may prefer to be office-based and work in a sector that interests you such as fashion, catering or sports. Or you could be trotting the globe and investigating complex criminal fraud cases.

Careers in Accounting

Accountancy is an expanding job market, so those who qualify in Accounting can expect to be in high demand and able to command a competitive salary.

Accounting can be split into the Forensic, Management, Financial, Government, Public and Auditing sectors. There are a large number of jobs that accounting graduates can go on to become which include:

• Financial Analyst
• Forensic Accountant
• Entertainment/Sports Accountant
• Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
• Internal/External Auditor
• Treasury Enforcement Officer
• IRS Auditor

You might enjoy the hustle and bustle of a busy company being a management accountant or prefer to work in an accountancy firm which prepares annual accounts for smaller firms. You can expect to earn from around $40,000 starting out as a junior accountant to a six or even seven figure salary if you are a CFO with a top firm. If you’d like to find out more about careers in accountancy, we recommend spending a few minutes watching this video. You can also find out heaps of useful information from The American Accounting Association and the National Society of Accountants.   

Learning Accounting

Learning Accounting at a higher level involves coming to grips with not just the rules and methodology of accounting but also an extensive amount of information and law.

Many accountancy courses will include core Mathematics as well as Economics. Whilst many accountants are mathematically-gifted, many are not. A trip to the math search results in Brainscape might also help you touch up on your differential calculus if you want.

Brainscape is an ideal study tool that will help you master the foundations of accounting and reach your career goals.                                                                                                                         

Accounting in Brainscape

The accounting market is crammed with flashcards from the best students, academics and experts in the accounting field.

You won’t be able to qualify and practise as an accountant until you have passed your CPA exams though. That’s no mean feat with the first time pass rate for the CPA being just 30%.  

That’s where Brainscape’s NINJA flashcards, with over 1,300 must-know concepts of the CPA exam, will prove to be invaluable. If you are struggling to get the scores you need,  Brainscape has been the game-changing tool that has helped thousands of learners finally achieve their pass and move on in their career.

Learn faster with Brainscape

Students learn on average twice as fast and remember longer with Brainscape’s confidence-based repetition system known as CBR. The CBR system utilizes three key learning methods to enhance the effectiveness of the learning experience.

If you have tried other computer-aided learning tools then the difference you will find with Brainscape is the confidence-based algorithm.

Every time the Brainscape system shows you a flashcard, you will also be asked to score your confidence in your answer. That score then powers the algorithm in choosing when the same flashcard is shown again.   

For example, you might see an exam question asking you to state all the profitability ratios. If you could state all the ratios, right away, then you’d record a 5. And in the future, the algorithm won’t show you that flashcard for some time. What it will keep showing you is the flashcard about the Prudence Principle that you scored a 1. This process makes the most effective use of your time and drills home the information you need to learn most.

Brainscape’s unique CBR system uses three key cognitive processes: Active Recall, Metacognition, and Spaced Recognition.  

The first of these, Active Recall is the process of retrieving information. When the brain retrieves rather recognizing information, neural pathways are utilized, strengthening connections and allowing for easier recall in future.  

Secondly, Brainscape uses Metacognition, which further consolidates the memory as well as powering the algorithm for effective learning.  

The final method in the Brainscape hat trick is Spaced Repetition - a well-known method of repeating information over and over at timely intervals to allow improved knowledge and recall.  

The fact that active recall, metacognition and spaced repetition are effective learning methods have been proven with thousands of academic studies over many years. All of this makes Brainscape the most powerful learning engine in today’s education market.  

How to get started

Get started with Brainscape today - it’s easy.

Brainscape gives you the option of creating your own flashcards if you want to customize your learning experience. You can keep your flashcards private just for yourself or help other learners too by sharing them.

Alternatively, make use of the thousands of flashcards already prepared by top experts and learners just like you. You can choose to recap or dig into new subject matter. Try out Ninja CPA flashcards or pick out thousands of other flashcards covering everything from the basics of double-entry accounting to bankruptcy law. Just choose a deck from below and start learning with Brainscape today!

Brainscape is THE tool that smart accountancy students use to get ahead. Best of luck in your studies and career from the Brainscape team.