Best Bookkeeping Certification Programs

Before you read any further, you should know that certificates in bookkeeping are practically ubiquitous, but degrees in bookkeeping as such are quite rare. As mentioned earlier, bookkeeping and accounting careers are sometimes mistakenly regarded as the same. (They are similar in many ways, and the real differences between the two do not really appear until you reach certain levels of education and career expertise.) Bookkeeping is essentially a preliminary to accounting, and thus, once you get past the certificate level, degrees in this field will be known as accounting degrees.

While searching for bookkeeping certificate programs, you may come across many accounting certificate programs and associate degrees. At the certificate level, and even at the associate level, the titles of bookkeeping and accounting are basically interchangeable. Without the title of CPA or a similar certificate or license, 'accountants' are the same as bookkeepers for nearly all intents and purposes. To become a 'real' accountant, you must earn the title of CPA or a similar title through years of education (a bachelor's degree is the minimum education requirement) and expense (the university degree and the certification exams are costly).

There is usually no need to get a certificate in bookkeeping if you have already worked as a bookkeeper for a number of years, as you can easily point to your work history in the field as well as recommendations from past clients. Although education certainly matters, clients are likely to trust your experience if you can show a record of quality work, and thus they may not even request to see other credentials.

Bookkeepers who are just starting their careers, however, should consider getting a certificate in bookkeeping if there is little to no work history to demonstrate your credibility to clients. If you are a beginner in the business, getting a bookkeeping certificate will also help you by increasing your confidence. Your greater knowledge of the industry will not only make you more marketable (read: hireable), but will give you the confidence and the credentials to charge more for your services.

If you choose a certificate program in bookkeeping as a step toward further education, that continued education will open the door to a wider variety of job titles in accounting and finance. But the reality is that without any further education, a certificate program in bookkeeping gives you one main option: becoming a bookkeeper. A bookkeeper may also be known as an accounting clerk, accounting assistant, accounting secretary, administrative assistant, or administrative specialist.

However, tangential options for certified bookkeepers include secretarial and administrative work. As a secretary, assistant, or administrative specialist, you may spend more time on duties like answering phones and welcoming clients, while financial work is a lesser part of the job. The bookkeeping certificate may increase the likelihood of you getting hired for a secretarial job, but be aware that your bookkeeping training may fade to the background as financial aspects of the job are diminished.

Bookkeeper

A bookkeeper records financial transactions, manages inventory and payroll, reconciles bank accounts, identifies errors, prepares reports, assists with taxes, and uses bookkeeping software to store and manage financial data. This career does not require a college education, but a certificate is recommended for those who are new to the business. Certification in specific accounting software, such as Quickbooks, is often sufficient.

Average annual salary for a bookkeeper is about $43,961 according to Payscale, though hourly wages (averaging $18.08) are often to be expected instead of a salary.

Administrative assistant

Administrative assistants must have a high school diploma or GED, but further education is not typically required. Knowledge of bookkeeping software is a valuable skill in this job, as are organization, attention to detail, and interpersonal skills. Holding a Certified Administrative Professional (CAP) license is an advantage when it comes to marketability as a prospective administrative assistant.

Average annual salary for an administrative assistant is $40,294 according to Payscale, though hourly wages (averaging $16.33) are often to be expected instead of a salary.

Auditor

Auditors are responsible for assessing the finances of businesses in order to ensure they pay their taxes in a proper and timely fashion. Duties include assessing insurance claims, examining financial records and evaluating accounting procedures, finding errors, and preparing tax returns.

This career requires a minimum of a bachelor's degree along with a certification such as CPA (Certified Public Accountant), CIA (Certified Internal Auditor), CGAP (Certified Government Auditing Professional), CFSA (Certified Financial Services Auditor), or CISA (Certified Information Systems Auditor), all of which require years of supervised and unsupervised experience, training, and examinations to attain. These certifications must also be regularly renewed.

Average annual salary for an auditor is about $58,060 according to Payscale.

After the certificate level, 'bookkeeping' is known as 'accounting.'

An associate degree may increase your marketability for bookkeeping jobs, administrative assistantships, and other entry-level jobs in the accounting field. If you already have an entry-level job in bookkeeping, an associate degree can help you get to the next level in your career.

Most accounting careers require education beyond an associate degree. As mentioned earlier, to become a CPA or another type of licensed or certified accountant, you will need further education in accounting. A bachelor's degree is the minimum level of education needed to gain CPA certification, but according to the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), even a four-year degree may not be enough to meet the national CPA standards of knowledge, skill, and experience. There is a requirement of 150 semester hours to obtain a CPA license in some states, but even where this level of education is not required by the state, it is highly recommended for a successful career.

Earning a master's degree, such as an MBA, is now considered all but crucial for career success. Another option to gain credit hours could be to combine a bachelor's degree with a graduate certificate in accounting or in a related field.

Finally, doctoral degrees in accounting, business, financial management, and related fields are abundant both online and at campuses around the country. Doctoral degrees are most applicable to people who seek leadership positions or university professorships.

The coursework for a bookkeeping certificate program typically involves the following (some course titles may vary from one program to the next):

• financial accounting
• payroll accounting
• managerial accounting
• introduction to business
• business taxes
• income taxes (may list individual income taxes and business income taxes as separate courses)
• tax planning and/or tax preparation
• tax fraud
• accounting software (or a class in Quickbooks or another accounting software application)
• business math
• accounting spreadsheets (or a class in Microsoft Excel)
• interpersonal communication or business communications
• business law or finance law

The core classes usually include financial accounting, payroll, tax, and software classes, while the rest may be chosen as electives. There is typically a required number of electives in a bookkeeping certificate program.

Financial Accounting

This introduction course is foundational to any bookkeeping certificate program and is typically offered as a 3 credit hour class during the first semester. It covers accounting principles and procedures and teaches students how to prepare financial reports and statements, with an emphasis on summarizing, interpreting, and analyzing the data.

Payroll

This course deals with the many aspects of managing payroll, from calculating gross wages, tax deductions, and tax forms to labor laws, record-keeping, and reporting. In a certificate program offered by a community college, this course is typically worth 3 credit hours and is taken during the second semester after prerequisites such as Financial Accounting have been completed.

A certificate program in bookkeeping usually includes 5 to 12 courses, which translate to roughly 16 to 45 credit hours, depending on how courses correspond to hours within a given program (different colleges calculate their hours using different systems). The typical program is 2 to 3 semesters long, or one to one and a half years.

However, there are programs that take only a few months or one semester. These are usually online courses. A certification course in bookkeeping software, such as Quickbooks, can be very quick and relatively inexpensive, but software certification is not the same as bookkeeping certification.

After completing a certificate program in bookkeeping, you should become an official CB (certified bookkeeper) through one of two nationally approved organizations. You may take the National Association of Certified Public Bookkeepers' Bookkeeping Certification Exam or earn the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers' Certified Bookkeeper Designation.

When it comes to choosing a certificate program in bookkeeping, you should consider your ultimate goals. Certificate programs are made to offer you actionable knowledge for a specific job, but at the same time, they are often used as a springboard to continued education.

If you simply want to earn certification in order to make more money or increase your hireability as a bookkeeper, you may want to choose a shorter program that is cheaper and requires less coursework. Shorter programs will give you all the information you need to pass the NACPB or AIPB certification exams.

But perhaps instead you want to use your bookkeeping certification to advance in your career or to work toward becoming a licensed accountant, auditor, or other business or finance professional. In that case, you should consider a more involved program that offers more courses, internship opportunities, and pathways to continue your education (i.e. credit transfer toward an associate or bachelor's degree). Although such a program will cost more and take longer, it will likely be more rewarding in the long term.

A third consideration: you may not need bookkeeping certification at all, but rather software certification. Many employers include accounting software fluency as a desired skill in job postings. Consider getting certified in Quickbooks, Xero, or another commonly used application to increase your marketability.

Getting into a bookkeeping certificate program is exceedingly simple, since you only need a high school diploma or GED to qualify for enrollment. There is no GPA requirement for most programs.

All you need to do is visit the website of the college or online program in which you wish to enroll, complete an online application, pay any application fees, and submit your high school transcripts. (You'll pay tuition later through a billing program, or all at once if you wish.) You may need to complete assessments or take placement tests.

Then you'll be able to speak with an advisor to plan your coursework, register for classes, and complete new student orientation.

There are many programs with open enrollment, which means there is no application fee, and some programs do not require proof of high school graduation. However, there is often an age requirement of 18 years or older.

Bookkeeping certificate programs vary in cost, depending on factors like program length, number of credit hours taken, in-state versus out-of-state fees, campus versus online fees, etc. The average certificate program costs somewhere between $600 and $5,000 as a whole. Programs on the lower end of that range are short (single-semester), in-state programs or online programs, whereas those on the higher end of the range are longer (3 semesters) and include out-of-state fees.

You could frame the cost in terms of dollars per credit hour. Most programs will range from $76 to $300 per credit hour, not including other fees.

Check the details of your program online to see whether the cost of the certification exam is included in the price of tuition.

Financial Aid and Scholarship Resources for Bookkeeping Certificate Programs

Your first step toward gaining the financial aid you need to cover the cost of your bookkeeping certificate program is to reach out to the financial aid office at your community college or certificate program. Financial aid administrators can help you determine the cost of your program and direct you to the appropriate avenues for grants, scholarships, and loans.

Completing the Federal Application for Student Aid (FAFSA) is a crucial step to getting government financial assistance in the form of subsidized and unsubsidized student loans as well as grants and scholarships.

There are all kinds of scholarships out there for people of various demographics--for instance, there are many scholarship opportunities created specifically for Native Americans, African Americans, and women in finance, and those are just a few examples. Try scanning for scholarships based on your state, county, or city; your race or ethnicity; your gender; your desired career; or other identity markers.

Two particular programs of note are the Catching the Dream scholarship and the Fukunaga Scholarship Foundation. The Catching the Dream scholarship awards up to $5,000 to Native American students 'who demonstrate academic achievement, clearly defined goals, leadership, the determination to succeed, and the desire to return to their communities and help others realize their dreams', according to their website. The Fukunaga Scholarship Foundation encourages Hawaiian students to pursue a career in business, with awards up to $20,000 for students in 4-year programs or pro-rated award amounts for shorter programs.