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Your career: the world after accounting

Team Prosple

An accounting degree opens up a world of opportunity – here are 30 non-traditional careers for accounting graduates.

A solid foundation

If you’ve done the accounting thing for a few years or if you simply don’t want to start, there are plenty of jobs you can do that are directly (or sometimes indirectly) related to your degree.

A degree in accounting gives you a strong grounding in mathematical study, which can be applied to a range of finance and business-related jobs. You will also have a solid understanding of business and tax law, which is a great starting point should you choose to tread the legal path.

Although we’ve offered up a few logical next steps, there’s really no limit to where you could take your career from here. A degree in accounting has taught you to think laterally, pay attention to detail, and understand many facets of the financial and business world.

Your career is yours to make so don’t let any of your sweet skills go to waste. Start a business, join someone else’s, consult, campaign, serve, sell or specialise. After all, ‘it is the courage to continue that counts’ (Winston Churchill).

Non-traditional jobs for accountants

Finance jobs

I could be a…

  • Stockbroker
  • Retail banker
  • Finance analyst
  • Financial advisor
  • Investor relations specialist
  • Investment banker
  • Mortgage broker

Business and entrepreneurial jobs

I could be a…

  • Entrepreneur
  • Business advisor
  • Business Manager
  • Manager
  • Commercial director
  • Change analyst
  • Sales specialist
  • Management consultant
  • Data scientist
  • Economist
  • Business analyst

Other jobs

I could be a…

  • Human resource manager
  • Training and development specialist
  • Business development manager
  • Finance journalist
  • Business writer
  • Fundraising manager
  • Grants officer
  • Supply chain manager
  • Procurement manager
  • Brand manager
  • Cost estimator
  • Contract specialist

The key is to think about which industries or jobs interest you. If you’ve had experience as an accountant think about the types of clients you worked with. How did you feel when you visited their offices? Was there ever an area of the business that you wanted to know more about? (Hot tip, check out our other Breakthrough Series sector guides to read more about these roles!).

Changing the direction of your career doesn’t necessarily mean more painful and expensive years at uni. You’re already a highly qualified individual. It might require a sideways step as you focus on retraining, but your trajectory will be much faster if you love what you do. Promise.