Demand for CPAs

An article in today's Wall Street Journal discusses the huge increase in demand for CPAs. the managing director at PWC states that hiring at all levels is up 30%. In another part of the article it states that the salary for a junior level partner is $500,000 on average, specialists in forensic accounting can make even more.

The human resource director at BDO Siedman states that they would hire everyone available with experience in SOX work.

The article also provides some stats about tne number or accounting graduates. In 1991 60,000 accounting degrees were awarded, by 1999 that number had decreased to 45,000 and in 2002 the number had jumped back up to 50,000.

Here is the big takeaway:

In the past, the ideal public-accounting candidate was a recent college graduate who could be trained by an employer. Now, companies are seeking out experienced people who have more diverse skills.

"They need to be able to build relationships with audit clients...and have the ability to train and mentor the staff underneath them," says Ms. Brannon. "We are looking for true business advisers, not just number-crunchers."