讨论-会计master VS finance master or MBA

usdusaj

May we suppose :1,对于一个在美国前100强中国公司财务部工作的人来说，
2, 想在米国工作几年再回来发展

问题 学习finance 可行吗？还是学master in accounting 好呢？
我觉得有以下问题，来一个swot 分析，
strength,
1,certainly finance is better than accounting, it is promising in china. a lot of chance here. Accounting is boring and just so so, you will be  a finance director/vp of a company.
In short , finance have a GOOD FUTURE.


weakness,
1， visa会有问题， it seems you did a little change, from accounting to finance. They are different, finance focus on bank, security, of course , (of course there is corporate finance), while accounting focus on caculation and reporting , it is definitly
corporate issue
2, to apply for finance is difficult than to apply for accounting.Chance is slim if you apply finance
3, some excellent school offer finnace master only in MBA, not master in finance

oPP
1, WORK FOR finance is harder to find than accounting. But the pay is better.
2, sinc eboth program you need to pay by yourself, why not try better one (finance)
Threat
visa issue.
到底那个好呢？

Your input is welcome.

cello82

hey! accounting is not boring, it just depends on how u look at it. i like accounting, because i look at things in a simple way. just like in the balance sheet, everything is supposed to be in balance.

and accounting does have a GOOD FUTURE. though the accounting equation is simple and straightforward, that's the golden rule that no businessman should ever forget. many CEOs were promoted from CFO, and many CFOs were accountants.

personally speaking, accounting is more practical than finance. according to the conclusion of a recent accouting professional seminar hold in NYC, there're more job opennings for accouting pros. so if u want to work in U.S., i suggest accounting.
talking about the circumstance in China, most accounting practice is more like simple bookkeeping. the market needs more professional accountants to reconstruct the system. what's more, the integration of the global economy is forcing an integration of worldwide accounting standards. China follows IASB rules, however, U.S. still stick to its FASB rules, which are quite different from IASB. the chinese market demands accountants who are familiar with FASB rules. so if u want to go back to china after graduation, i still recommend accounting.

no offense to finance!
I may go to extremes a little bit. =P

usdusaj

yes accounting can offer you work. BUt just work, the salary is relatively low. Finance has a brighter future. And a lot of CFO has a MBA degree.

For those who just want to lead a easy life, accounting is enough. Definitely it will be easier to stay in US and find a job first. cello82, you are right to say it is more practical although i do not agree with you which one has more future.

cello82

hehe, i don't think future can be predicted. we can only look for trends and make some forecasts. and for career, one should always do whatever he or she has passion for. whether the career has a future or not may be the second consideration. for example, u can't say a smart investor has a brighter future than a dedicated farmer, unless what u are talking about is simply money.

attic

Well, for most of our Chinese Students who want to first stay in the US for a certain period of time, and then..., accounting related fields do take an edge.

In current drowsy economy in the US, the first and for most is how to survive, not how to develop even for the native Amarican. And, a foreign student w/o financial background is very very difficult to get a job offer with only an MBA credencial, even a famous one. Haven't we seen tons of experienced staff from wall street were laid off and another seas of financial R&D jobs were outsoursed to india? If you are sure you can beat those with years of experience, with same or even better credencials, speaking their native language, and living there since they were born, just go ahead! Otherwise, alwasys hope for the best and prepare for the worst!

In addition, the accounting jobs are everywhere here in the US. Whlie most of them are not highly paid, an annual salary of $40000-$80000 (most accountants coould fell in this range in the US, with or without a CPA as a backup.) is a decent salary and far above average among the common US people's annual income.

Finally, the accounting jobs often not only donot block one's way to develop in financial areas, but often could be a stepstone of it.

Just my 0.02

Attic

[此贴子已经被作者于2003-6-6 1:42:59编辑过]

merrylili

my major is chemistry, I want to apply for MBA finance or accouting MS, is my background enough for accounting? I know some accounting MS require some prerequisite before admission.

My W/E only one year, is that too short for application of MBA?

If I can get a parttime accounting MS, how big the opportunity I can change my caree path in the future?

usdusaj

hey.
for attic&cello, it seems we can draw a conclusion that macc is also a good choice. Especially for the economic downturn, it is a wise decision.

But fo rVISA issue, it is another story. It is hard to get th eVISA for macc. MBA is better for visa.
I heard that th eaccounting professional is dominated by Asia people in US. Our chinese has a good brain for maths and caculation. It is a good chance.

attic

Merrylili, as far as I know, macc do not require very strong and long w/e. (I could be wrong about it.)

usdusaj, I do not know much about visa issues currently, but aren't most macc 1-year program? If so, it should be easy for both cost effective consideration and getting visa. (correct me if I am wrong.)

cello82

I dont know much about visa either. but it's true that not many chinese students pursuing MSA in U.S. The CPA certificate is more demanding.

You are absolutely right that when talking about visa, it's totally a diffrent story, usdusaj. I dont know what to say. But it's really frustrating for so many chinese business professionals struggling in this long-term visa application war, which sometimes turns out to be a waste of money, time and labor.

i believe there is one day that we chinese people can turn this situation around, there is one day that million of foreigners would be eager to squeeze in the gate of China.

funnytiger

我个人感觉， 如果你由於各种原因 (比如没有钱) 去不了名校， 不如去读个这样的master, 出来在美国找个工作干几年， 再申请名校的MBA。 因为一般学校的MBA不论在美国和中国将来的路都不容易