Dan Swanson

CPA | Manager

Recently, I was approached with a simple question, “How do you feel about giving a presentation to high school students for Career Day?” My initial reaction, in true accountant fashion, was, “What is the date? I hope this doesn’t interfere with the October 15th deadline.” Then, the more I thought about it, the more excited I became at the opportunity to stand in front of students and speak about the exciting world of accounting. Yes, you read that correctly: the EXCITING world of accounting.

How do I reach these kids? How do I make my presentation fun and interactive? What do I wish I knew when I was that age? Why accounting? What if I am not asked to come back next year? I had all these questions that needed answers. The future of the entire accounting profession was relying on my presentation. Okay, maybe I am overexaggerating slightly, however, my goal was to give a fun presentation to get young minds interested in learning more about the accounting profession. 

I began my presentation with a brief introduction and immediately asked the students what they thought of when they heard the word ‘accountant.’ We all laughed at the fun and exciting stereotypes surrounding the accounting profession. These were too great not to share:

• Boring and dull.
• Sit in tiny cubicles and stare at a computer screen all day.
• Count money.
• Solve math problems all day.
• Prepare tax returns.
• Secret agents using their goods looks and ninja training to fight crime (this one is actually true!)

Besides laughing with the students and getting them to open up, there was an important takeaway from this exercise. We, as an accounting profession, need to do a better job sharing our experiences and the opportunities that await  students considering going down the accounting path.    

• Travel opportunities – Working at larger, national firms provide the opportunity to travel and work in cities across the country. We get to tour the factories and plants to see the company’s operations and how ‘things’ are made.
• A variety of businesses and industries – Behind every business (big or small) there is an accountant. I joked with the students, ‘We are Everywhere.’ If you are interested in learning how business works in a variety of industries, accounting is your friend.
• Problem Solving – As the bulk of my audience consisted of math students, I spoke about the problem-solving skills they were learning in high school math class. We, as accountants, are called to solve problems. Whether it is creating a tax planning strategy for our clients or applying a new accounting standard to their financial statements, we lean upon the critical thinking skills we learned in math class to get us through. 
• Educating and Collaborating – As accountants, we are lifelong learners and work together as a team to serve our clients. The opportunity to learn and grow is present each day, along with the privilege of sharing this knowledge with others.

After conveying these experiences and opportunities to the students, I realized my time was running short, so I challenged them with the following:

Next time you meet with your guidance counselor, make sure you sign up for the accounting course offered at your school. But I am warning you, speaking from personal experience, you may fall in love.