What Can You Do With a Master of Accounting (MAC) Degree?

Long hours, endless number-crunching and tedious work completed behind closed cubicles – these are just a few of the traditional stereotypes of accounting that give the profession a bad rap. But according to Scott Showalter, director of the Jenkins Master of Accounting (MAC) program at NC State, these stereotypes couldn’t be further from the truth. The accounting profession is an exciting one, he says – marked by a vast, diverse set of growth opportunities. To learn more, we sat down with Showalter to discuss some of the unique benefits of accounting and why he believes the Jenkins MAC program provides a foundation for a promising and lucrative career.

What kinds of things can individuals do with an accounting degree?

Why is that? What makes accounting so valuable and versatile? 

As accountants, we often say that accounting is the language of business – but it’s even more than that. Accountants are critical thinkers who bring tremendous insight to the business – so they play an essential role at the decision table. Whenever significant business decisions are being made, accounting is always involved. Always. Everybody tends to think that the CEO makes all of the decisions, but the CEO wouldn’t be able to make an informed decision without the insight that accounting provides. It’s essential. That insight also makes accounting a great foundation for entrepreneurship. 

Accountants are critical thinkers who bring tremendous insight to the business – so they play an essential role at the decision table.

Tell me more – how can accounting help entrepreneurs be more successful?

Many entrepreneurs are engineers or technicians with really good ideas – but if they don’t have an accounting background, they will find it difficult to start or sustain a business. Accounting thinks backward to tell a business how it’s doing, but it’s also forward-thinking. It helps businesses think about where they want to go and how to get there. To me, that’s the fun part of accounting – working with businesses and leaders to identify their vision for the future and helping them take steps forward in the direction they want to go.

While accounting is relevant to nearly every industry, are there any specific industries that actively seek professionals with an accounting background?

Any industry that has a lot of regulation needs accountants to help them interpret regulatory laws and be compliant with those while simultaneously taking steps forward to enhance the business. Industries with a lot of uncertainty and ambiguity, such as financial institutions and technology companies, also stand out. For technology companies, revenue recognition can be particularly challenging because of the way technology companies bundle their offerings.

How does accounting differ from its stereotypes?

Many people believe that accounting is black and white, but it’s anything but that – it’s very gray. Accountants are well-versed in dealing with ambiguity and uncertainty. Another misconception is that accounting – especially public accounting – is boring and predictable. However, this is simply not true. Every day is different, and you get exposure to a variety of experiences and challenges. After spending three to five years in public accounting, those experiences make you very valuable in the marketplace.

What are some other benefits of the accounting profession?

It’s really hard to beat the opportunity and job security that accounting provides. Again, once you’re on the on-ramp, you can take your career just about anywhere – and while most industries don’t have a big, wide on-ramp, accounting does. Public accounting firms have invested in an infrastructure to support accountants in their early career development. Not to mention – it pays pretty well, too. And while I wouldn’t say it’s recession-proof, it’s certainly recession-resilient. Even if a company is not making money, somebody still has to interpret, report and provide insights.

It’s really hard to beat the opportunity and job security that accounting provides.

What advice do you have for accountants about how they can maximize their value and accelerate their career advancement?

My biggest piece of advice is to stay open to new opportunities. When I was at KPMG, I changed roles every three to four years – so much so that my wife thought that I never turned any down. Did I need to change jobs? Of course not. But to me, career changes are growth opportunities – so if I saw something in particular I was interested in, I would take that path to learn something new. Compared to other professions, accounting is a bit less vertical – there are not a ton of guard rails and there are so many things you can do with it. Taking advantage of the opportunities available to you allows you to expand your knowledge base and create value for yourself. 

Compared to other careers, how does accounting pay? Can you provide some insight into the salary growth trajectory for accounting professionals?

Accounting is a very lucrative profession that offers great financial security. While accounting does not have some of the highest starting salaries in business, once you enter the profession, that concern disappears – especially when you consider the overall career of an accounting professional. Once you get into the profession – and again, there’s this wide on-ramp for that – you’re probably going to move forward significantly faster than a lot of other people in industry. As you move along, you’re going to be given more challenging assignments – and all of that drives compensation. I’d say that within five to six years, most accountants’ salaries are higher than those who started with a higher salary in a different position. There’s also a shortage of accountants right now, which is driving starting salaries up as well. Right now, starting salaries for students with a MAC degree are hovering around $70,000+.

Within five to six years, most accountants’ salaries are higher than those who started with a higher salary in a different position.

Is getting a MAC degree necessary? 

Technically, no. Public accounting requires 150 credit hours, but it doesn’t really matter whether you complete those hours as a graduate student or undergraduate. That said, if you want to widen your career choices down the road – and especially if you want to move into industry later in your career – having a graduate degree in accounting is important. One of the biggest selling points for the Jenkins MAC program is that a MAC degree offers a lot more than CPA exam preparation. Yes, we do prepare you for the CPA exam – but what we’re really preparing you for is your career in the accounting profession. With a MAC degree, a lot more doors are going to be open to you as you progress in your career – and we have a very affordable program here that allows students to pay off student loans in a very reasonable period of time. As a matter of fact, a lot of accounting firms offer longevity bonuses to help students pay off student loans. 

Can you share a bit about the future of accounting?

One question a lot of people are asking is, “Could accounting be eliminated by AI?” – and the answer is no. AI is definitely going to automate some of the tasks that accountants do, but it simply won’t replace the role of accounting. This is actually great news – because accountants will get to spend more of their time on exciting challenges and less time on the mundane tasks that kind of color traditional stereotypes of accounting. That means that some of those stereotypes of accounting won’t even be relevant in the coming years. With more technology in place, accounting will be more and more focused on critical thinking and providing key insights to business leaders – and I think that’s a pretty bright future.

To learn more about the Jenkins MAC program at NC State’s Poole College of Management, click here.