Though there has been a lot of turmoil in the financial industry in the past few years, the world still needs those who are skilled in working with accounting, finances, and all aspects of money in the business industry. Many of those who may have lost their jobs as a result worked in the bigger companies doing much more high risk, and sometimes shady, things that the average accountant or financial planner does on a day to day basis. If you are worried that getting into jobs related to finance, here are a few facts that should ease your mind at least a little bit.
Some of the most glamorous, intense, and often risky financial careers are jobs in investment banking. Most jobs in finance and accounting do not usually carry with them the same risk that is involved in the investment banking business. These types of finance jobs usually carry security with them and a way to make the living that you are interested in while not having to worry about the security of your job. as far as jobs related to finance go, deciding to go into investment banking is one of the more risky decisions that a person can make. It might pay off for you, but you might just lose everything at the same time.
One of the most recognizable jobs related to finance is accounting. Did you know that accounting as a practice and a profession is thousands of years old? This is information that has been uncovered by archeologists that shows that the earliest accounting records, which date back more than 7,000 years, were found in Mesopotamia which was inhabited by the Assyrians.
In spite of what you might think, the accounting field can actually be incredibly competitive. The most competitive positions in accounting include accountant managers, senior accountants and fund accountant managers of private equity funds. If you are less interested in these kinds of positions, there are probably plenty of jobs in the average accounting firm that does not carry this kind of competition. If you do not mind the competition however, many employers want fund accountant managers to have between three and five years of experience with private equity firms, investment banks, and hedge funds.
If you are more interested in working with small companies or start ups, then you might want to look into venture capitol work. Venture capital professionals usually spend most of their time with startups or small, fast growth companies helping them with the best ways to run their business.