This is what a college freshman is worried about

This is an unedited conversation I had with someone on Instagram earlier this week.

He asked some great questions.

Some of you may have the same questions.

Hope this is helpful!

(I’m going to call him Marcus)

Marcus: Hey, I am about to go into my freshman year of college and choose my major to be accounting. In high school I didn’t really have any interest in math and still don’t. Since the pay is high for this job I’m willing to put in the work but I need to know if it’s going to be worth it…and a few questions: Does it involve a lot of numbers? Can you get promoted? How is the pay realistically ? Can I work from home a lot? Is there time for fun and activities? I would really appreciate it if you can get back to me!

Joey: Hey man! That’s great to hear and very fair that you have these questions.

1) I also hate math. But accounting isn’t math like how you learned in highschool. It’s just numbers. Addition, subtraction, division, multiplication. All in excel. So it’s easy.

2) yes you can get promoted. It’s pretty standard to get a few promotions in your first couple years. After that it becomes more difficult but still common.

3) the pay is solid. Depends on your location but on average you will get a solid salary. But it won’t be anything too too crazy. I think a lot of places will start you around 75k these days.

4) it depends on your company and client tbh. But in general yes you can usually work from home at least a few days a week.

5) lots of time for fun. Thankfully the people you work with are usually pretty chill so you can make friends. And the hours aren’t too bad unless you’re in busy season. Then there may not be time for fun lol.

But in general I think accounting is great, but obviously nothing is perfect. And you’re only a freshman so you have plenty of time to change paths if you don’t like it and even with an accounting degree there is a lot of flexibility. And lastly, don’t stress too much. It will all work out. Just enjoy college as much as you can.

Marcus: Man hearing this gives me a lot of relief. Any tips on how I can get to my degree as fast as possible n not waste any time?

Plus what is your take on internships and when I should get one…?

I appreciate you taking your time to answer these questions btw.

Joey: And idk about getting your degree fast tbh. I just did mine in 4 years. I guess you’ll just have to take summer classes either at your university or a community college. Or online. And just take as many classes as you can handle each semester

And yes getting through college faster might be what’s best for you to save money and things like that but don’t be rushing to start working. You have the rest of your life to work.

And internships you can really start trying to get whenever. I think junior year is probably most important but don’t stress if you don’t get one. Just try your best and I’m sure you’ll find one somewhere

And also, these are just my opinions. You will find what works best for you but I’m always here to answer any questions you have.

Marcus: Man all this intel you gave me I really appreciate it!

Definitely don’t want to rush things like you said I still got a lot to learn in general

But yeah I’ll probably have a few more questions in the future and very appreciative of you saying you’ll help me.

That’s the goal do it in junior year

Joey: Yeah man, no worries at all. I’m happy to help. Good luck with everything and don’t hesitate to reach out again.