"So What Is It About Accounting?"

There's an old saying that, if you ask 10 people, you'll get 11 opinions, on almost any topic. But there is one thing that nearly every one is in agreement about: when it comes to Accounting, the student has to hit the ground running!

Why is that? Is it so hard, so tough? Sure, everyone - myself included! - says learning Accounting is like learning a new language. Is that what makes it so difficult?

Or is it difficult to begin with? While the analogy to learning a new language may be valid, it certainly is not like learning Sanskrit or Hieroglyphics. Accounting is learned all the time by most every one who wants to engage in business, whether or not they stay in the field of Accounting itself. And many students "take" to it right from the start.

So what is it about Accounting?

Well, it may very well be that Accounting is basically a very precise way of doing things, that builds and builds and builds on itself. Unlike a true language which must be learned completely through memorization, Accounting involves some initial memorization but quickly requires true understanding if one is to move ever upward. The initial memorization, which becomes relatively easy when explained using every day business transactions, are the simple rules, such as Assets = Liabilities + Equity; debits are on the left side and credits are on the right side ("debit"actually is the Latin for "left" just as "credit" is the Latin for "right"); Cash is an Asset, and is therefore on the left side of the equation; and normal increases to the balances of Assets are on the left; with Liabilities and Equity on the right side of the equation and normal increases to those balances are on the right!

So Accounting is precise, and many students actually enjoy and appreciate and take to Accounting because of its preciseness. Not all students work this way. But with this in mind, what that means is that all students need to get off to a solid start to the work involved from its very beginning. A student can not jump into Accounting in, say, week three and expect to readily pick things up. Thus, text books must be purchased at the very first class; readings must be done; assignments must be done; students must come to class prepared to participate, if only to ask questions to obtain clarification.

Therefore, for the student that is first entering college, they must recognize and appreciate that they are no longer "breathing high school" and in fact must be the professional student that college requires and that in particular the study of Accounting requires!

In fact, Accounting is not so much math oriented as it is, again due to its preciseness, a matter of reading comprehension. The business transactions that serve as the basis for then being understood as to their Accounting implications must be parsed out for all their nuances (e.g., were the services rendered "earned" or "to be earned"; were the services "paid for" or sold "on account"; and similar). Especially since each student has their own capabilities for reading, math, and comprehension, then it is for each student to approach the work recognizing this. For some students, they will need to read the materials slowly; some will need to read it twice; all will need to appreciate the exactness of what they are reading (so maybe turn off the ipod!).

Therefore, for the student in need of remedial math and English, which Berkeley College so capably provides, it must be recognized when it is appropriate to consider themselves ready for taking on Accounting. Also, when any student starts to study and runs into any difficulty, to readily take advantage of the services provided by Academic Support Center in the form of individual tutoring.

With a proper understanding and orientation toward what is required when a student is about to study Accounting, then all students should be able to "hit the ground running" and find that they too can appreciate the preciseness of Accounting to their advantage!