Learn key skills and concepts for financial accounting in this beginner-friendly course, from the basics of accounting statements to complex topics like investments and securities.
Learn how to analyze financial statements and reports, including income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements, and understand essential financial accounting principles and metrics. This course offers hands-on exercises using real-life examples from well-known companies like Facebook, Amazon, and Apple to demonstrate practical application.
Build your knowledge of investments, securities, debt accounting, and other complex financial accounting concepts in this class.
Accounting involves recording all of the financial transactions of an individual or business and analyzing and interpreting that record to gain a better understanding of past and future financial decisions. It is an important part of business and can help with many different types of decisions. In a Forbes Advisor article, the author explains, “Accounting information exposes your company’s financial performance; it tells whether you’re making a profit or just running into losses at the end of the day… Besides playing a key role in providing transparency for stakeholders, accounting also ensures you make informed decisions backed by data.”
Accountants can work for accounting firms, set up their own practices, or work for a specific company. In addition, there are several different types of accounting, each with a different purpose. For instance, Financial Accountants focus on financial transactions such as balance sheets and income statements, while Tax Accountants help businesses and individuals properly follow tax codes. A Bookkeeper is a position similar to an Accountant because both jobs involve recording financial transactions; however, Bookkeepers only record transactions, whereas Accountants also analyze the recorded information. Another well-known accounting job is Certified Public Accountant, which requires a certain level of experience, in addition to passing an exam.
If you’re taking a beginner-level accounting class, there probably won’t be prerequisites. Instead, your class is likely to cover all the things you need to know. At the same time, there are several skills that can make the learning process easier. Accounting involves working with financial data, so it is definitely helpful to have some understanding of business and financial concepts. In addition, strong verbal and written communication skills are helpful as an Accountant because you’ll need to regularly produce reports and communicate data to other people. Accounting also involves math, and if you can’t do math then you may find this subject challenging. Also beneficial to students pursuing accounting is attention to detail since this is an important part of being successful in this discipline.
Accounting has a reputation for being challenging to learn. Accountants need to develop many different skills and gain an understanding of a wide range of financial concepts, and this can feel overwhelming at first. Despite the challenge, however, with dedication and practice, accounting can be mastered by almost anyone. A great way to learn this subject is to enroll in a paid class. With a class, you can learn under the guidance of an expert who can answer your questions and share the things that they have learned through experience. If you do plan to learn accounting, be aware that this profession also involves lifelong learning, since technology and laws change often.
What you learn in an accounting course depends on the focus of the course, but in general, you’re likely to learn methods and standards for working with financial data, in addition to gaining an understanding of a range of different financial and business topics. Specific topics might include income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements; using computer applications like Microsoft Excel; depreciation and amortization; and preparing financial and tax records.
The Dallas metropolitan area supports businesses in many different industries, most of which have a need for people with accounting skills. Built In, a website that was designed to help inform tech professionals, maintains that Dallas is a leading destination for people in the tech industry. It says, “Prioritizing its local talent and tech community, Dallas has become a sought-after destination on a national and international level. Tech companies are moving their headquarters to Dallas, bringing fresh jobs and opportunities to the city. With its infectious maverick mentality, Dallas has joined the ranks of the tech elite while blazing trails for others to follow.” CompTIA compiles a yearly list called the Tech Town Index, which rates the best places to live and work in tech in the United States. Dallas recently ranked third on that list. CompTIA explains, “Opportunity is still the name of the game in Dallas. In 2021, the area advertised for more than 156,000 IT jobs. That figure rivals larger metro areas like New York City and Washington, DC.” In addition, it says, “The area is projected to grow by 10.5% over the next 5 years. Add to that the fact that the cost of living is slightly less than average; a median salary of $97,431 sounds pretty good.”
Accounting skills can lead to several different types of jobs. A Bookkeeper is a position focused on keeping financial records. Accountants also keep records, but they also analyze financial information, prepare taxes, and create forecasts. As an Accountant, you can choose to specialize in a specific type of accounting. For instance, a Financial Accountant records and reports on financial transactions related to business operations. Another accounting job is that of Certified Public Accountant (CPA). A CPA is someone who has met strict educational and testing requirements. According to data provided by the Glassdoor website, in Dallas, the average salary for a Bookkeeper is $40,000 to $60,000, and for an Accountant, it is $58,000 to $89,000. A Dallas Financial Accountant earns about $77,000 to $119,000, according to Glassdoor, and a CPA earns $89,000 to $155,000.
According to projections provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, between 2022 and 2032, accounting jobs will grow by about 4 percent in the United States. The agency finds that the Dallas metropolitan area is the fifth largest employer of Accountants in the United States, employing more than 36,000 people. It finds that in general, accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping, and payroll services employ the most Accountants. Finance and insurance, and government are also major employers. Individuals working in finance tend to earn the highest wages of any type of Accountant.
The BLS also provides statistics for Financial Managers, who frequently use accounting. It predicts 16 percent growth in this profession over the next ten years, which is much faster than average. It explains that globalization is one trend driving this growth, stating, “Companies, particularly those with operations in foreign countries, have accumulated more cash on their balance sheets in recent years. As globalization continues, this trend is likely to persist. This practice should lead to demand for financial managers, as companies will need expertise in managing cash.” According to the BLS, Dallas employs more than 20,000 Financial Managers, with an annual mean wage of $165,000.
Budget Analysts—another job that involves accounting—are also expected to see steady job growth over the next decade. The BLS predicts 3 percent growth between 2022 and 2032. The BLS finds that Budget Analysts in Dallas have an annual mean wage of about $80,000.
There are several different options for learning accounting in Dallas. If you want to learn QuickBooks, you can sign up for a class through ONLC Training Centers. The QuickBooks Desktop Introduction Course has two sessions and costs $695. Students learn to work with a company file, work with lists, set up inventory, sell a product, invoice for services, process payments, work with bank accounts, and enter and pay bills. Classes have an average of twelve students. Students receive a certificate of completion after finishing the class.
You can also learn QuickBooks through Certstaffix Training. QuickBooks Online Edition: Basic Course costs $435 and takes one day to complete. It is designed for beginners and covers QuickBooks basics including setting up a company, tracking income and expenses, creating sales receipts and invoices, and managing customers and vendors. Students also learn to avoid common mistakes. In addition, they get hands-on experience through practical exercises. Instructors also cover tips and tricks to streamline the accounting process.
Asher College runs a program called Office Accounting Certificate and Degree Program. It takes ten months to complete and covers accounting theories and principles, bookkeeping using QuickBooks, in addition to a wide range of office skills.
Dallas College offers a class called ||CPN45||, which costs $149 and can be completed in six weeks. Students learn the basics of accounting such as double-entry bookkeeping, analyzing and recording financial transactions, preparing an income statement, and writing checks. They get hands-on experience with a wide variety of different skills.
If you want to learn accounting in a live online format, there are many different options.
Noble Desktop has several different online offerings. Intro to Financial Accounting is designed for beginners and is intended to teach students to analyze financial reports and statements. It costs $325 and takes one day to complete. This course covers income statements, balance sheets, cash flow statements, and accounting basics. The Financial Accounting Bootcamp is a two-day class that focuses on introductory accounting topics, including different types of financial reports, depreciation and amortization, and analytical tools like year-over-year comparisons. Students also learn advanced topics like balance sheets, cash flow statements, and advanced details of income statements. The class has two sessions, and tuition is $549. Noble Desktop was founded in 1990 and is based in New York City. All of its classes include the option of a free retake within one year.
The Digital Workshop Center also offers online accounting classes, including ||CPN285||, which focuses on bookkeeping basics and best practices. This course has three sessions, and tuition is $1,406. Instructors walk students through the complete workflow for bookkeeping, which includes creating accounts, entering debits and credits, and preparing statements. After finishing this class, students should be able to analyze common business transactions, classify accounts, enter debits and credits, record transactions in the journal and post to the ledger, and prepare financial statements. Basic digital literacy is a prerequisite for this course. Some experience with accounting vocabulary is helpful, and access to QuickBooks is recommended.
If you want to learn accounting in QuickBooks, NYC Career Centers runs a class called ||CPN781||. There are two sessions, and tuition is $499. Students will learn fundamental QuickBooks skills, including setting up and navigating the software, generating reports, tracking expenses, and recording transactions. The class also covers invoicing, processing payments, customizing forms, working with credit card accounts, managing inventory, and managing payroll. NYC Career Centers is based in New York City and offers a wide range of business courses and corporate training programs.
The American Management Association also offers several accounting courses, including Fundamentals of Cost Accounting. This class has three sessions and costs $2,595. It covers cost accounting basics such as job costing procedures, process costing procedures, absorption costing techniques, and direct costing techniques. In addition, students learn standard costing techniques, ABC costing techniques, cost-volume-profit analysis, and equivalent units of production calculations.
Another American Management Association option is How to Speak Accounting, which is a one-day class that costs $279. It covers many different accounting concepts, and students also learn about the accounting process. Covered topics include how various business transactions affect financial statements, the accounting equation and its components, and accrual basis accounting. Students also learn about income statements, profit and loss statements, balance sheets, cash flow statements, and statements of retained earnings.
Accounting skills can be useful in almost any company, and if you want to train your employees in accounting, Noble Desktop offers corporate and on-site accounting training programs. There are a variety of flexible scheduling options, and content can be customized according to your company's needs. Virtual training sessions run via Zoom or another teleconferencing platform. Another popular corporate training option is to buy vouchers for Noble’s open-enrollment group classes and let employees enroll individually. Companies that buy multiple vouchers will receive a discount. For more information about corporate accounting training options, or to schedule a complimentary consultation, contact Noble Desktop.