Chhoeurn Kim Eng. Photograph: Phnom Penh Post

If we're talking about money, the fieldwork and the study subjects we think of first will be accounting and finance.

These fields of study are quite popular, because many students are interested in working in accounting and finance positions.

Studying accounting or finance is not so easy, those two subjects are mostly related to numbers, which means we have to think and calculate more than write.

 “When studying and working in the accounting field, we have to use our brains to calculate, remember numbers and try not to make any mistakes, because if we are careless with those numbers – especially with amounts of money – we will responsible for any loss,” Chhoeurn Kim Eng says.

Kim Eng, 26, is an accounting and finance executive at the Cambodia Securities Exchange.

She graduated with a bachelor degree in business management, majoring in accounting, from Norton University in 2007 as well as with a bachelor degree in English from Western University in 2009.

At Norton University, Kim Eng’s studies focused on marketing, management and accounting.

“We have to understand the whole process of managing, not just accounting,” Kim Eng says.

“We especially have to understand, and learn about, finance systems around the world and understand the process of working in both international and local fields.”

When Kim Eng was in the fourth year of her studies, she began working at the Attwood Company as an accounting clerk. In 2009, after two years in that job, she changed workplace to become an accounting and administration officer.

Kim Eng spoke about some of the difficulties and challenges she has faced during several years of accounting work.

“We are under some pressure while working, and we have to spend a lot of time on that work, as well as thinking a lot,” she says.

“If I make a mistake, I will be the one who is responsible for it. So we have to be very careful and double-check everything before we finish a task.”

As an accounting and finance executive, Kim Eng has to carry out many tasks such as compiling income and expenses reports for the company, checking all the reports sent from other banks, and double-checking the reports other staff have done. If they are correct, she asks other staff members to input them in the company’s accounting system.

“There are many tasks to carry out, but if we’re communicating well with one another, we feel more at ease because we know we can work together as a team and help one another. And by double-checking and overseeing all the reports of a company, we can help ensure that company uses, or spends, its money more effectively.”

As well as working, Kim Eng is studying for membership of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) at CamEd, having passed the test and gained a five-year scholarship from the Ministry of Economics.

She also plans to pursue a master’s degree in accounting and, if possible, to become a certified public accountant (CPA), in order to ensure a bright future career.