To qualify, students generally have to complete a number of courses in accounting and auditing along with a business major. The best path for each student depends on the career they hope to pursue upon graduating.ĭepending on the school, students may be able to get a focused education in AIS with a special certificate program. Others go for a major in computer or IT with a minor in accounting or business. Many students on the AIS career path choose to earn a major in accounting with a minor in computer science or information systems. Most AIS specialist positions require a minimum of a bachelor’s degree. Whether you're still in college or university, or not, you'll increase your opportunities and gain access to higher salaries by including these accounting skills in your degree program or continuing education. The bottom line is that accounting students should make every effort to gain work experience with accounting software, forensic accounting, business valuation, business administration, and other vital skills. Analytical skills that will help interpret data and perform systems analysis are becoming some of the most in-demand skills on the market, rather than data entry or tracking financial transactions. By tightening up any data leaks along the way, the AIS will be more secure and more accurate in its reporting.
Working with programmers, AIS analysts can help to guide the creation of software that gets the job done for their clients while adhering to the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).Ī systems analyst can also look at an existing AIS and assess whether it’s as effective as it could be. The ability to automate tasks such as creating receipts, tracking inventories, and running analyses has effectively taken them out of the hands of accountants, in many cases. Instead they may hire a specialist and a certified public accountant to maintain connections with consultants. With an effective accounting system in place, companies can bypass the need to hire an entire team of low level accountants to handle their sensitive financial data. Gone are the days when accountants had to comb through financial reports with a fine-toothed comb.Īutomation is quickly establishing itself as the future of accounting and business in general. They may hire their own specialist or internal auditor for an existing computer system if they are a big enough company, or they may turn to consulting firms to get them the system they need for the accounting functions they must complete. Companies are likely to turn to a specialist when they first need to implement their AIS, and to take care of any issues that may arise while using it.
When you pursue a career in AIS, you’ll play a key role in the information system.Īs much as businesses need a solid AIS, they also need someone who knows how to use it. It’s where organizations enter, collect, store, and perform data processing in order to create reports, file taxes, and ensure that they remain in legal compliance with the federal government.Įach information system typically contains six distinct elements: procedures and instructions determined by policy, data, people, software, IT infrastructure, and internal controls. Accounting systems are the method through which a business keeps track of its financial information.