Still deciding which career path to move yourself on? Accounting and finance have been one of the most lucrative business industries to work in. Accounting jobs have historically been some of the highest paying provided you work for the right organization and have the right skills for it.

If you are interested in developing your career in accounting, you will have tough competition to face. If we can avoid any sugar-coating, accounting is also one of the toughest professions to work in. All you need is a slight miscalculation and there will be a heck lot of explanation to do.

Yet, accounting professionals find themselves amongst top earners in the business market. We can’t stress the importance of getting the right qualifications and experience for professional accountants. From bankers to CEO assistants and a bucket-load of job roles in between, accountancy is also one of the widest industries today.

For students who cannot decide whether to take accounting as their profession, we have a good read below. Read through to find out 7 of the highest paying accounting jobs in the industry today:

1. CFO (Chief Financial Officer)

Chief Financial Officers are the cream of the crop for accountancy professionals. These are the finance and accounting heads for mainstream business organizations. Any small to medium company would probably not have a CFO in place just because of the sheer high salary.

Financial management, business investment, business strategy, risk analysis and management, performance analysis and many more are all CFO’s jurisdictions. CFOs guide CEOs towards investment planning and risk analysis. They help companies build their finance strategies.

Their job roles may vary depending on the company they are working for, but CFOs are still leaders in accountancy. You will need to keep adding on your qualifications in order to become a CFO. Don’t get your hopes high just yet either, decades of experience are required just to qualify too.

Average Salary of a CFO = $320,000 Approx.

2. Corporate Controller

Corporate controllers supervise accounting departments in organizations and companies. They are responsible for overseeing high tier financial strategies for their companies as well. Corporate controllers are on the average second-highest earners in the accountancy industry.

From maintaining financial statements to payroll management and general ledger maintenance to tax compliance for their companies, corporate controllers do it all. They also help prepare budgets for companies and much more with their extensive knowledge.

This job role is only reserved for the highest qualified accountancy professionals with lots of experience as well. Ideally, you should start by considering a master’s degree in accountancy to qualify. Visit Carmen to get professional career advice for the best finance careers in the USA.

Average Salary of Corporate Controller = $130,000 Approx.

3. Managerial Accountant

Next, we have the managerial accountants who are big shot players in their own right for organizations and companies. Managerial accountants are in charge of planning and preparing financial reports for all linked employees and bosses. They report directly to CEOs and Directors for businesses.

Financial forecasting, cost-based business planning, adapting operation, critically overseeing product process and many more are jobs of managerial accountants. They also do incremental costing and enterprise optimization in their companies very diligently.

Financial accounting expertise leads to managerial accountant job roles. This is one of the best finance jobs designation going around in the market today. Be sure to learn quite hard in order to become sufficient in terms of knowledge and skill required for the role.

Average Salary for Managerial Accountants = $83,000 Approx.

4. Forensic Accountants

One of the most notorious and yet lucrative jobs in the accounting circuit is a forensic accountant. These guys are notorious because they are responsible for finding all shortcomings in financial ledgers and records. They are highly paid because of the sheer investigation they are qualified to do.

If your company has some un-explained losses, you get the help of forensic accountants. Their job roles are so diverse that not many forensic accountants work for any organization on a full-time basis. These guys investigate problems in records for business organizations on a contract basis.

These are some of the most reliable auditors in the industry today. Years and years of practice and being able to handle numbers like a champ make good forensic accountants. Getting precise earnings estimates for these guys is pretty hard as they usually work on short-term contracts finding problems.

Average Salary of Forensic Accountants = $80,000 Approx.

5. Financial Analysts

Some of the most commonly found accountancy professionals and yet very talented individuals are financial analysts. These guys are responsible for assessing the financial health of the business or organization they work for. Their assessments help guide investment decisions for future planning.

The role of financial analysts is also one of the most flexible as their duties will vary depending on the company they work for. People for the thrill of data gathering, spreadsheet maintenance, financial modeling and developing investment theses will excel at this role.

Additionally, frequent communications with investors with management and forecasting reporting are also their designated roles. Financial analysts are also amongst some of the top earners in the accounting and finance circuit. Polished skills, high-level qualifications, and top experience are required.

Average Salary for Financial Accountants = $77,000 Approx.

6. Information and Technology Accountants

Now we are in financial career startup territory. Although, information and technology accountant might not be your first job after completing a master’s in accounting. It is still getable without many years of experience in the industry. Also, technology and accounting are fast merging together.

Information and technology accountants will be responsible for handling the overall IT system your company will use. Organizing and reporting financial data from the system will be your job as well. The only catch with it is that you will need to be good at IT and Accountancy at the same time.

This combination is fast growing in the industry as well. If you are someone with say a bachelor’s degree in information technology and have an interest in doing your masters in financial accounting, you are the perfect fit. The job also becomes pretty lucrative pretty fast down the line.

Average Salary for Information and Technology Accountants = $75,000 Approx.