I'm a CPA
5yrs Big 4
4yrs top 75 regional firm
2yrs running IA/SOX at a new public
Money is very good, not so much the first 4yrs but once you make manager and have your CPA license the money begins to flow as you take on a lot more responsibility.
Your gonna need a BS Accounting from a good school in order to get hired a by a top 100 firm, and be at the top of your class to get an offer from the Big 4.
You do have a lot going for you in that you are older than the rest so University should not be nearly as difficult as it is for a lot of 18yr old who spend their time at Frats partying and spending mom & dad cash., When its your own money, you don't flake on school.
You will be bossed around by seniors who are 24 - 26yrs of age so I hope you like taking orders from young kids. Its tough on some, impossible for others. I spent 3yrs in the Army so was OK with it at 25 when I graduated.
Almost every mid 30's person I ever hired into public accounting washed out in 2yrs due to other life commitments, not easy to get someone 32 with a family to work 6 12hr days in a week and put in 80-90 hrs routinely.
The CPA license has gotten easier some say, harder others say. But its a 13hr long exam broken into 4-parts which encompasses obscure topics and covers about 3000 pages of material. Review courses are $2000, and the exam cost is about $1,000. Since only 10% pass all 4-parts on the first try budget another $1000 for retakes.
80hrs of CPE required every two years, mandatory 20 in year 1 now. 60hrs of it can be in general with 20 in Accounting & Auditing updates. The 60hrs is cheap, the 20 is a bit more spendy to get. If you are former Big 4 usually your Alumni status gets you free CPE. It does for me.
Its a tough career path - nothing comes easy without hard work though!
Good luck!