In fact I'm a 24 years old Muslim born in Guinea and now living and studying in New York, U.S. My question is that concerning the Islamic verdict on studying certain western subjects such as: accounting, finance,.. etc; and later on working in those fields.

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

Muslims are in need of studying accounting, finance, and other subjects. They are even more entitled to acquire mastery of such subjects than westerns. In fact, when Muslims neglected such subjects and Westerns strived to learn them and advance them, they stepped ahead of Muslims. They fully utilized the natural resources and as a result they became outstanding and advanced in technology, science and many other fields leaving Muslims well behind them. Therefore, we encourage those who have the opportunity and ability to study such subjects and not neglect them, even if they can continue their studies in a western country, to serve Muslims in the future and to help advance them in their specialization. However, studying such subjects does not necessarily mean that one should work in forbidden fields. So, he should avoid all kinds of forbidden transactions, interest, etc.

 Allah knows best.