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Where do Accountants Work?

No matter what type of organization you want to work for,
they probably receive and use money, which means they need an accountant!

The five general categories of location for an accountant are
Public Accounting Firms;
Companies;
Government Entities;
Nonprofit Organizations; and
Education.

Public Accounting Firms

Accountants who work for public accounting firms provide accounting work in many different areas for individuals and companies that cannot or do not provide the service for themselves.
The main types of work include auditing, tax, and consulting.
Publicly-traded companies in the United States are required by law to hire a public accounting firm to conduct a financial audit once per year. The opinion of the public auditor is made public along with the financial statements of the company.
There are four national accounting firms known as the “Big 4.” They are Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG, and Pricewaterhouse Coopers. There are thousands of regional and local firms. The largest accounting firm in Arkansas is BKD, LLP.
About 25% of all accountants work in public accounting firms.

Accountants are employed by individuals and by every size company from mom-and-pop small businesses to multi-national corporations.
Accountants who work for single individual or business are called private-sector accountants.
Accountants who work for a single company perform job duties that lead to financial statement preparation (financial accounting) and internal decision making by corporate management (managerial accounting).
About 60% of all accountants work in private-sector accounting.

Accountants are employed by all government entities
- Government Accountability Office (the accountants for the US government);
- The Internal Revenue Service;
- The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI);
- State government office such as The Arkansas Department of Revenue or the Legislative Audit; or
- Local government entities such as a Police Department or Public School.
Government accountant perform work similar to private and public accountants for government agencies.

Nonprofit organizations include the following:
- Charities such as the Humane Society, The American Heart Association, Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, and Goodwill;
- Hospitals;
- Churches; and
- Other entities who do not seek to earn a profit.
Accountants who work for nonprofit organizations perform work similar to private and public accountants for these nonprofit entities.

Accountants who work in education teach the accounting subject matter to students.
Accounting is taught in high schools, trade schools, colleges, and universities.
To teach accounting at the university level, an individual usually has a Master’s or Doctorate Degree or significant experience as a practicing accountant in public, private, governmental, or nonprofit accounting.