Comments on: The Freelance Bookkeeper’s Credentials http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/the-freelance-bookkeepers-credentials/ Fri, 18 May 2012 10:43:15 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: chelcie wimmer http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/the-freelance-bookkeepers-credentials/comment-page-1/#comment-56347 chelcie wimmer Thu, 17 May 2012 00:04:39 +0000 http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/?p=113#comment-56347 Good post. I'm experiencing some of these issues as well.. Good post. I’m experiencing some of these issues as well..

]]> By: Gil Isiminger http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/the-freelance-bookkeepers-credentials/comment-page-1/#comment-51723 Gil Isiminger Wed, 11 Apr 2012 11:46:36 +0000 http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/?p=113#comment-51723 Thanks on your marvelous posting! I truly enjoyed reading it, you can be a great author.I will ensure that I bookmark your blog and will come back in the future. Thanks on your marvelous posting! I truly enjoyed reading it, you can be a great author.I will ensure that I bookmark your blog and will come back in the future.

]]> By: Gabrielle http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/the-freelance-bookkeepers-credentials/comment-page-1/#comment-46855 Gabrielle Wed, 29 Feb 2012 15:39:06 +0000 http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/?p=113#comment-46855 you are very welcome, Karen. I'm glad this has been helpful to you. :-) you are very welcome, Karen. I’m glad this has been helpful to you. :-)

]]> By: Karen http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/the-freelance-bookkeepers-credentials/comment-page-1/#comment-46826 Karen Wed, 29 Feb 2012 06:23:19 +0000 http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/?p=113#comment-46826 Thank you so much, Gabrielle. I will take your advice. Your site is so helpful! Thank you so much, Gabrielle. I will take your advice. Your site is so helpful!

]]> By: Gabrielle http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/the-freelance-bookkeepers-credentials/comment-page-1/#comment-46797 Gabrielle Tue, 28 Feb 2012 22:26:44 +0000 http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/?p=113#comment-46797 hi Karen, My first question to you would be, are you just looking to find an entry-level bookkeeping job, or to start working as a freelance bookkeeper? Since you have no bookkeeping or accounting experience and no QuickBooks experience, I suggest you try to get an entry-level job AFTER you have at least some training in both bookkeeping and QuickBooks. While you likely don't need the skill level as an employee that you would need as an independent freelance bookkeeper, if you expect to be paid for your skills, you need to have skills. You can build skills in two ways 1. Through education (initially), and 2. Through experience. Experience is generally more valuable than even education, but very few will ever want to pay you to learn via trial and error on their financial information. Bottom line, you are trying to start a new profession. If you ultimately want to be paid well, you really should learn bookkeeping before learning QuickBooks. If you use the Intuit training for non-accountants, that may be helpful, but your lack of understanding of true double-entry bookkeeping will ultimately slow you down with QuickBooks because you won't understand what the program is doing behind the scenes. That can get you into a lot of trouble. You could probably get by with the overview training as an employee, but you would likely not do very well as a freelance bookkeeper in the long run. Sorry to not be especially encouraging, but in this profession there are many "hackers" who sell themselves as bookkeepers who have no experience or understanding of bookkeeping, and give the profession a bad reputation. And I've Been called in after so-called "bookkeepers" who SAID they had experience with QuickBooks, but really messed up the clients' books and cost them a lot of money to get the books cleaned up and straight. So I cannot honestly support that shortcut approach. If you really do want to do bookkeeping, I do think the Penn Foster program is a good one. Your success will depend on how well you apply what you learn. Employers want to know that you can do the work. If you do well on the Penn Foster program, you should be able to handle an entry-level position, and learning QuickBooks thereafter will also be easier. hi Karen,

My first question to you would be, are you just looking to find an entry-level bookkeeping job, or to start working as a freelance bookkeeper?

Since you have no bookkeeping or accounting experience and no QuickBooks experience, I suggest you try to get an entry-level job AFTER you have at least some training in both bookkeeping and QuickBooks. While you likely don’t need the skill level as an employee that you would need as an independent freelance bookkeeper, if you expect to be paid for your skills, you need to have skills. You can build skills in two ways 1. Through education (initially), and 2. Through experience. Experience is generally more valuable than even education, but very few will ever want to pay you to learn via trial and error on their financial information.

Bottom line, you are trying to start a new profession. If you ultimately want to be paid well, you really should learn bookkeeping before learning QuickBooks. If you use the Intuit training for non-accountants, that may be helpful, but your lack of understanding of true double-entry bookkeeping will ultimately slow you down with QuickBooks because you won’t understand what the program is doing behind the scenes. That can get you into a lot of trouble. You could probably get by with the overview training as an employee, but you would likely not do very well as a freelance bookkeeper in the long run.

Sorry to not be especially encouraging, but in this profession there are many “hackers” who sell themselves as bookkeepers who have no experience or understanding of bookkeeping, and give the profession a bad reputation. And I’ve Been called in after so-called “bookkeepers” who SAID they had experience with QuickBooks, but really messed up the clients’ books and cost them a lot of money to get the books cleaned up and straight. So I cannot honestly support that shortcut approach.

If you really do want to do bookkeeping, I do think the Penn Foster program is a good one. Your success will depend on how well you apply what you learn. Employers want to know that you can do the work. If you do well on the Penn Foster program, you should be able to handle an entry-level position, and learning QuickBooks thereafter will also be easier.

]]> By: Karen http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/the-freelance-bookkeepers-credentials/comment-page-1/#comment-46796 Karen Tue, 28 Feb 2012 21:39:48 +0000 http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/?p=113#comment-46796 Hi, I should add that I'm looking to break into bookkeeping at entry level and am wondering whether learning Quickbooks via the nonaccountant's training program would be enough to get hired at entry level. Alternatively, is the Penn Foster program worth the time and money? Does anyone know the success rate of their Bookkeeping Diploma graduates? Any advice would be very much appreciated.Thanks! Hi, I should add that I’m looking to break into bookkeeping at entry level and am wondering whether learning Quickbooks via the nonaccountant’s training program would be enough to get hired at entry level.

Alternatively, is the Penn Foster program worth the time and money? Does anyone know the success rate of their Bookkeeping Diploma graduates?

Any advice would be very much appreciated.Thanks!

]]> By: Karen http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/the-freelance-bookkeepers-credentials/comment-page-1/#comment-46354 Karen Thu, 23 Feb 2012 07:24:52 +0000 http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/?p=113#comment-46354 Hi, I have no accounting experience or background but am looking to get into bookkeeping for various reasons. I already have a bachelor's degree and professional experience in the publishing industry. My time and resources are limited (2 young kids), however, so I am looking at basic accounting training right now to try to get my foot in the door. I noticed that you mentioned Penn Foster, and it seems like a good program, but its limitation is that it does not include Quickbooks, which seems to be a requirement for getting any accounting job nowadays. On the Intuit site, there is a training bundle for nonaccountants that includes basic accounting principles plus Quickbooks 1 & 2. My question is, would I be better off skipping Penn Foster and AIPB, and just working toward a Quickbooks certification? Hi, I have no accounting experience or background but am looking to get into bookkeeping for various reasons. I already have a bachelor’s degree and professional experience in the publishing industry. My time and resources are limited (2 young kids), however, so I am looking at basic accounting training right now to try to get my foot in the door. I noticed that you mentioned Penn Foster, and it seems like a good program, but its limitation is that it does not include Quickbooks, which seems to be a requirement for getting any accounting job nowadays. On the Intuit site, there is a training bundle for nonaccountants that includes basic accounting principles plus Quickbooks 1 & 2.

My question is, would I be better off skipping Penn Foster and AIPB, and just working toward a Quickbooks certification?

]]> By: Gabrielle http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/the-freelance-bookkeepers-credentials/comment-page-1/#comment-45635 Gabrielle Mon, 13 Feb 2012 21:55:26 +0000 http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/?p=113#comment-45635 You are not alone Ruby. I have heard a lot lately from people who have plenty of education but no practical work experience. My best advice to you would be to apply possibly for temporary positions where your skill is important but you might not need a lot of experience to get started. You will also have to be willing to start at an entry-level job. Because education is important, it will help you, but your real learning will happen on the job. If you want to know whether or not having a bookkeeping certificate will help you get a job, when you apply for your next job, just ask them if that would be helpful, especially if they're going to turn you down because you don't have any real world experience.Hope that helps. You are not alone Ruby. I have heard a lot lately from people who have plenty of education but no practical work experience. My best advice to you would be to apply possibly for temporary positions where your skill is important but you might not need a lot of experience to get started. You will also have to be willing to start at an entry-level job. Because education is important, it will help you, but your real learning will happen on the job. If you want to know whether or not having a bookkeeping certificate will help you get a job, when you apply for your next job, just ask them if that would be helpful, especially if they’re going to turn you down because you don’t have any real world experience.Hope that helps.

]]> By: Ruby http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/the-freelance-bookkeepers-credentials/comment-page-1/#comment-45394 Ruby Sat, 11 Feb 2012 03:54:20 +0000 http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/?p=113#comment-45394 I am also confused as to what I should do. Currently I am going to school for Masters in Accounting and at same time I am taking CPA prep courses. I can sit for the CPA exams, however in order for me to get the license I need to have 2 year experience. I have no work experience at all. I have been just going to school to get it over with then work. Now I feel like I am stuck because everywhere I tried to apply for a job so I can start getting some experience and hands on training, everyone is like I need to have previous experience. I thought about getting certification in bookkeeping before going for CPA exams to see if that helps me get into a job, but not sure if that's a good idea. I need guidance on what I should do...how can I get hands on experience to have better knowledge and understanding of the accounting world? I am also confused as to what I should do. Currently I am going to school for Masters in Accounting and at same time I am taking CPA prep courses. I can sit for the CPA exams, however in order for me to get the license I need to have 2 year experience. I have no work experience at all. I have been just going to school to get it over with then work. Now I feel like I am stuck because everywhere I tried to apply for a job so I can start getting some experience and hands on training, everyone is like I need to have previous experience. I thought about getting certification in bookkeeping before going for CPA exams to see if that helps me get into a job, but not sure if that’s a good idea. I need guidance on what I should do…how can I get hands on experience to have better knowledge and understanding of the accounting world?

]]> By: Gabrielle http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/the-freelance-bookkeepers-credentials/comment-page-1/#comment-41381 Gabrielle Thu, 22 Dec 2011 15:23:34 +0000 http://thefreelancebookkeeper.com/blog/?p=113#comment-41381 You are very welcome, Jane. And you will most certainly meet with success because you are taking swift ACTION! That is the part where most people get stuck. (They take in all the academic learning, but never take action to start using it!) Bravo! Please do check in and share your journey from time to time with us! We're all encouraged when we see a fellow accounting professional growing her business no matter what. Thanks for sharing your next steps. :-) You are very welcome, Jane. And you will most certainly meet with success because you are taking swift ACTION! That is the part where most people get stuck. (They take in all the academic learning, but never take action to start using it!) Bravo!

Please do check in and share your journey from time to time with us! We’re all encouraged when we see a fellow accounting professional growing her business no matter what. Thanks for sharing your next steps. :-)

]]>