By QINA LIU
qliu@bizjournals.com | 716-541-1613

CPA Cheryl Prout knew she was interested in accounting since high school.

Though initially interested in bookkeeping, she said she learned more about her career path while attending Canisius College.  

"It's really that we're business consultants," said Prout, a partner in Gaines Kriner Eliott LLP.

Along with 12 accountants from the firm, she participated in a project with Kenmore East High School from February to June. They exchanged emails, phone calls and visits with 50 juniors and seniors. While she said half of them were interested in a future in accounting, the rest were undecided about their career goals.

Young people often don't know what they want to do with the rest of their lives, but there are numerous benefits to the field, Prout said, adding, "It's really what runs the nuts and bolts of a company."

Caroline Szydlo, HR director of Brock, Schechter & Polakoff LPP, said students are attracted to the accounting field because it offers a solid career with flexibility and good benefits and compensation.

"Almost any company has an accountant or accounting department," she said.

While at one time there were more jobs than accountants, Szydlo said that in recent years, there seems to be more students than accounting positions. That means people must work harder to land a job in the field.

Despite the economy, recruitment numbers have held steady, she added. Her firm recruits one or two interns during tax season from February through April, as well as two to three full-time employees every year.

"I think there are a lot of different niches in accounting in fraud and audit," she said. "My guess is that they see these fields growing."

Representatives of Gaines Kriner Elliott and Brock, Schechter & Polakoff attend the annual "Meet the Accountants Night" and visit campuses such as the University at Buffalo, Fredonia State College and Canisius College. The event attracts anywhere from 50 to 150 students, depending on the size of the school and the accounting programs.

Michael Paolini, UB School of Management senior associate director, said the reason so many students are interested in the field has to do with the demand and job guarantee.

"Accounting firms are always here," he said. "You can't say that with other industries."

Approximately 45 students graduated from UB's master of science in accounting program in May, he said, with 40 of them securing a job by last December. Because the state raised its 120-hour educational requirement for CPA certification and licensure to 150 hours in 2010, Paolini said CPA firms have a greater need for qualified professionals.

Even for individuals who don't pursue public accounting, he said, an accounting degree serves as a good background.

"Accounting is a good bedrock kind of concentration or major for any type of business," he said. "That makes it a good gateway."

Along with the state Society of Certified Public Accountants, the UB School of Management hosted the sixth annual "Career Opportunities in the Accounting Profession" program. It's designed to educate minority high school students about the opportunities available.

Twenty-four seniors enrolled in the five-day program this summer, according to Ann Burstein Cohen, associate professor of accounting.

"I think they walk away with what accounting is and what accountants do," she said. "Some people have in the back of their minds that accountants are these boring people behind bean counters."