"The old line is, accounting is the language of business, and I think that's true," said David Greene, chairman of the Indiana CPA Society and chairman of systems and accounting programs for Indiana University's Kelley School of Business. "Accounting can be your career, or it can be the foundation for your career."

Accounting and finance are separate fields, each with its own skill set. Traditionally, finance folks didn't fret about posting debits and credits in the ledger. Likewise, accountants didn't agonize over how to properly discount the future value of cash flows.

But check the want ads. These days, jobs with finance descriptions frequently specify a preference for certified public accountants. Some even demand them even for analyst jobs outside the accounting department.

"A lot of companies require the CPA. They won't look at anyone unless they have theirs," said Angie Meyer, a recruiter for the local operations of Chicago-based Business Management Personnel.

The shift is a bit like expecting a physicist to also boast a chemistry diploma. Or to demand that your plumber is also certified as an electrician.

But accounting qualifications are what the market requires now, especially for anyone on the management track.

"For [candidates] to have the right kinds of career opportunities down the road, they really need to have that type of exposure," said Kent Burns, a partner with Management Recruiters of Indianapolis North.

Herb Benshoof, a recruiter for locally based staffing firm Pinnacle Partners LLC, said Sarbanes-Oxley has raised the bar. Post-Enron, businesses want to be certain anyone handling their money is meticulous.

"Originally, they thought they could just get an intern [to handle Sarbanes-Oxley provisions]. Now they're getting into it and going, 'Holy Toledo,"' Benshoof said. "I've seen a major transition in every company, private and public, saying,"'We need to get ahead of this thing. We don't want to be behind the eight ball."'

Universities have already begun to recognize the need. And for those whose campus days are a memory, Charles Trzcinka, a finance professor for IU's Kelley School, recommends community college or night school to brush up on accounting. At the basic and intermediate levels, he said, the content is indistinguishable from a university's.

The challenge has always been convincing students to slug through the courses.

"It's boring. Who wants to spend a summer learning debits and credits?" he joked. "Knowing accounting doesn't guarantee you know anything other than how the numbers are generated, but you can be fooled if you don't. The fact is, that's how the information is collected."

Over the next decade, Greene said, demand will increase for folks who understand both accounting and finance. Already, he said, the fields have begun to overlap. Accounting used to be based entirely on historical cost, Greene said, or the dollars paid at time of a purchase. But finance concepts like present value have become more important to generally accepted accounting principles.

"I don't think there's any question; to be successful in finance or accounting, you need to have both perspectives," Greene said.

That's particularly true in Indianapolis, Benshoof said. The city's lack of headquarters means corporate finance jobs can be hard to find. But every company needs accountants. Local companies often expect their financial personnel to wear both hats.

Anyone boasting the total package can command a premium on the job market.

"Certainly the law of supply and demand applies," Greene said. "There's nothing that can instantaneously create an accountant with three to five years' experience, so compensation is under pressure as well."

-- Peter Schnitzler