Leovetta Childrey - How I Chose Accounting as My Career part 2 of 3

During the second half of the school year my BOE teacher introduced us to bookkeeping with double entry accounting. I had never heard of it. Some of my classmates were struggling but I was making A’s. So, I decided to go to the library and research careers in bookkeeping and accounting. I found that accountants could make good money and there were different area of accounting. That was it! I was going to be an accountant! It paid well, it fit my skills and I actually liked dealing with finances. My mom started teaching me at 4 or 5 years old how to save, count and maximize the use of money. I learned that I would need a four year degree to obtain the type of accounting jobs I wanted. I looked to my older sister, Lisa for a path to get my degree. Lisa had gone to Wallace Community College while staying at home to earn her first nursing degree (LPN). This was affordable and didn’t require taking out student loans. She then attended Auburn University in Montgomery and earned her RN while working as a LPN. So, I planned to approach my education in a similar manner. I contacted the community college and told them I wanted to obtain an Accounting Degree. They didn’t offer a Bachelor Degree in Accounting, but told me I could take my basic courses there and transfer them to Auburn University in Montgomery (AUM). I got a part-time job, continued living at home and enrolled in the community college. After completing all transferable courses, I enrolled into Auburn University and moved on campus in Montgomery.
To finance my education, I applied for and obtained Pell Grants. The grants didn’t have to be paid back. They covered all of my tuition at Wallace and AUM. The supermarket I worked for in Selma allowed me to transfer my job to their store in Montgomery. So, I used my earnings and savings to cover my housing fees and living expenses once I moved to Montgomery. I never had to take out student loans. Thank You Jesus!! My college roommate had a work study job in the Career Development Center and told me they posted co-op jobs on the bulletin board periodically. So, I registered with Career Development and later got a co-op job with the State of Alabama (the State). My job turned out to be more clerical than in depth accounting, but the pay was more than my part-time jobs and provided more relevant experience to put on my resume and advance in my career path. After graduating, my first job in my field was in the private sector as an office manager. My duties included using computer software to record sales, accounts receivable, accounts payable, filing sales tax returns, month-end adjusting entries, printing checks, filing for titles, buying office supplies, making bank deposits and receiving and taking mail to the post office. The work was satisfying but the company paid me bookkeeper pay instead of accountant pay (they didn’t pay me for my degree). So, I worked another job along with this one for a while and continued looking for a job that would compensate me appropriately for my degree. I worked this job for about three years, but I know now God had his reasons for keeping me there.

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