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Any Big 4 tax guys in here? I am just about to start my junior year in a 5 year program with only two accounting classes under my belt so far (intro to financial accounting and intro to managerial accounting). Most of what I've learned so far has related to audit, so I naturally have leaned toward working in audit. However, I feel like the more structured schedule of tax work (more time in the office, etc) fits my personality better. My main question is: how complex and/or stimulating can tax work at a large firm be? I've been to a few leadership conferences, so I've heard the lectures regarding the main differences between audit and tax, but I still feel like I know next to nothing about actual tax work.
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Aug 17, 2011 22:12
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Is there as much grey area to deal with in tax as there is in audit? I've been having paranoid thoughts that improvements in automated tax software will eventually render tax accountants obsolete. As I said earlier though, I don't know much about tax work for large companies. So, tell me why I am wrong!
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Aug 30, 2011 21:03
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What is the best way to contact a campus recruiter who won't be visiting my campus this semester? Career services at my school doesn't have any contact info. Searching on the internet isn't turning up anything current. I feel like calling an office and asking to speak with someone could be received negatively.
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Sep 11, 2011 02:00
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Tiax Rules All posted:In a similar vein, I'm looking at dropping out of my MSA program after the spring semester to work full-time in accounting under a CPA (have the job offer already, I just need to decide whether I want to go for it). I'm in California, so I can easily take a couple of additional CC classes while I'm working to finish up the 24 accounting and 24 business credits to qualify for the CPA exam. After the educational requirements are out of the way, I can study for/take the CPA sections while finishing up my work experience. I've quadruple-checked the California CPA requirements, and it seems that this is a viable thing to do. Just make sure that you will be eligible to receive your license before January 1st, 2014. If you will have 150 semester units (including your 24 in acccounting and 24 in business) and one year of experience under a CPA or 120 semester units and two years of experience under a CPA before 2014, then you will be okay. If you won't meet either of those requirements, you will basically be forced to go back to school to meet the new education requirements. After December 31, 2013, all candidates in CA applying for a CPA license will be required to have 150 semester units. 20 of these additional units must be in "accounting study" and 10 will have be in ethics related courses. These requirements technically have not been approved yet, but it's pretty much a done deal at this point. From what you said it sounds like you will have 150 units and a year of experience before the deadline, but you might be cutting it pretty close.
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Nov 9, 2011 16:47
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Check out this page Specifically quote:What will be the educational requirements for CPA licensure beginning January 1, 2014? This "tip sheet" basically lays out the proposed education requirements. Yeah, it sucks. I know a lot of people set to start full time next fall who will be scrambling to pass the CPA exam before the deadline, and even more people still don't realize that the changes will affect them. The firms themselves are just starting to get a handle on how to treat this.
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Nov 10, 2011 03:14
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From what I've been told, they don't stack. I'm not sure why calcpa doesn't mention the requirements on their page--maybe because the changes aren't approved yet? I know in some other states that have made similar changes to education requirements, candidates could become licensed under the old rules if they had passed one or more parts of the CPA exam before the deadline. So far, CA hasn't added anything like this to the law. You need the education, work experience, and passed all four parts of the exam before 2014 to come in under the old rules. One can hope though. Like you said, if you work your rear end off, finish your 150 hours and pass the exam, you'll be able to beat the deadline.
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Nov 11, 2011 07:20
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I'll be participating in at least one Big 4 "National Leadership Program" this summer. From what I hear, participating in these programs, especially the more selective national versions, greatly increases your chances of securing an internship for the following summer. Anyone attended one of these and/or have any advice? I have heard that some (most?) participants receive an early internship offer after completing the program, or at least are granted an early 2nd round internship interview. That would be amazing.
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Mar 7, 2012 05:51
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hellboundburrito posted:Every single person I know who has attended one of these, myself included, got an internship offer at the end of the program. Makes the rest of college a lot less stressful. Well that is definitely encouraging, thanks. Did you fly home offer in hand, or were you contacted later in the summer?
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Mar 8, 2012 08:07
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I've been curious about how easy it would be to move from big 4 tax with CPA/MST to the IRS. I really don't hear about people taking this path very often. Does it ever happen? The IRS seems like a solid exit opportunity, though maybe not as lucrative as other options.
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Apr 18, 2012 04:46
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gmilo posted:I think a lot of people get sold hook line and sinker into "stay in big4 for x years and youll land this amazing job/make tons of $". The problem is you have to actually survive 5 years first. I have a lot of accounting friends that were losing their minds after just 2. I know that associates, senior associates and you could argue even managers at the big 4 work a lot for relatively lower pay. However, I've read a lot about other more "prestigious" career paths like banking and law, and the general consensus seems to be that accounting is the least demanding out of the three. Do people who say this have any idea what they are talking about? I know all about 80 hour weeks in busy times, but at least the traditional CPA gets a few good breaks in between the insanely busy hours (I say traditional because people working in b4 specialty groups often don't have a "busy season"). When people leave big 4, it seems like it is a combination of hours and pay, not just hours. Most people leave for a bump in salary. Would I be right if I said that if the market pay for accountants was higher, and starting pay at a big 4 was 80-90k (which will obviously never happen), not very many people would be in a hurry to leave? On the contrary, attorneys leave biglaw jobs starting at 160k because that lifestyle can be just too much to handle. As an accounting undergrad, I could just be talking out of my rear end here, though.
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Apr 21, 2012 23:20
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Haeleus posted:I'll be receiving my Bachelor of Commerce next year and I'm looking to pursue my CA designation (I live in Ontario). Though most of my networking and campus events have focused only on the Big 4, I'm really looking for any place (aforementioned, small accounting firms, government) to start work, and I'm curious whether it is true that the Big 4 are the best places to receive the necessarily training for the CA exams. So far most people I've talked to have flaunted these firms as the best experience in training and mentoring, but I'm a little intimidated by the hectic nature of starting work there. As an alternative, I've had my eyes on trying for the CRA or OLG. I'm not sure if the big 4, or any firm for that matter, will provide you with enough on the job training to pass the exam--there is just too much material tested. In the US, pretty much all midsize to large firms will pay for a CPA review course to help you pass the exam. Working at a big 4 exposes you to the largest and most complex clients in the business world, and it is that experience, in addition to the brand name on your resume, that attracts people to these firms. I know people who have moved from smaller regional firms to the big 4 as experienced hires, and they did fine. One thing to consider is that public accounting will be hectic at times no matter where you are working. The big 4 are just in the spotlight more often.
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Apr 22, 2012 07:39
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Speaking of tax, is anybody in here actually worried about corporate or individual tax simplification? Seems like the politicized nature of our tax code makes this highly unlikely, and we are operating under the Tax Reform Act of 1986, which did such a great job at simplification.
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Apr 24, 2012 16:16
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Anyone know if big 4 would typically pay or help pay for a full time, one year master's degree (tax or accounting) after completing a summer internship after senior year. I am guessing they only pay if you are also working full time.
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Apr 26, 2012 03:20
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Yeah...I live in California and we are just now switching over to the 150 unit rule. It used to be the case, especially in the tax area, that you could start work at 120 units and still be CPA eligible, and get your MST part time which the firm would reimburse. Now that the 150 unit rule will be in place, the big 4 want to see a 150 unit plan or you don't have a chance. I am a junior, so I'm doing leadership programs this summer, and hopefully that will set me up for an internship after my senior year. I will only have 120 units coming out of undergrad, so I am going for a full time MST to take care of the extra 30. I wasn't really expecting any firm to pay for my full time MST--just wishful thinking I guess.
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Apr 26, 2012 07:14
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CA is going to require the extra 30 to be accounting/ethics related, because if someone is not an ethical person, 10 units of ethics study will surely fix that little problem!
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Apr 26, 2012 19:53
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Captain Beans posted:Surely you only can take 3 hours of ethics right? 10 credit hours is like 3 ethics classes which seems like a ton. The way the law is currently written, it is 10 credit hours of "ethics study." Granted, a broad range of classes meet the definition for "ethics study" right now, from business law to philosophy. This will probably change once schools have enough time to adjust their curriculum though.
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Apr 27, 2012 05:58
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seymore posted:I agree. I do a lot of tax, and it would be great if our system were even just left alone for several years in a row. But it just does not happen. If you do a lot of tax, doesn't your career depend on the complexity and ever changing nature of the tax system? Understanding a complex system that not many people are knowledgeable about only makes your skills more valuable.
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May 6, 2012 00:28
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So I spent this summer doing summer leadership programs and ended up with internship offers from all of the big 4 for next summer. Part of me wants to say, "Yay, I did it! Time to relax", but waiting nearly a year before starting seems like an awful long time. Would it be wise to pursue a part-time internship during the school year with a smaller firm after already accepting a big 4 offer? I feel like I could benefit from the work experience.
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Aug 22, 2012 21:18
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Will be starting my senior year in a 5 year program. Two years of school left before being CPA eligible in my state.
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Aug 22, 2012 22:47
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Mush Mushi fucked around with this message at 08:53 on Nov 24, 2020 |
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Aug 24, 2012 05:35
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hellboundburrito posted:Depending on what you want to go into at a Big 4, a little more experience wouldn't hurt. But if you have an offer, you're pretty much good. I did the whole sophomore leadership program thing, got my offer, and rode it out. I've done just fine three years after starting full time. Personally, my advice would be to enjoy the rest of college, learn what you can from classes and don't gently caress up, but remember it is your last few months/years/whatever of not giving a poo poo. Even if you learn a few things at another internship, you'll relearn it or be forced to forget it when you start at the bigger firm. You're young, enjoy it. Let's say I do end up doing another internship before the summer. Is that something I would want to disclose to my big 4 recruiter, or is it really not a big deal so long as there is no schedule interference?
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Sep 5, 2012 17:45
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Do independence rules prevent a CPA from holding a mutual fund that contains a client's stock? Or does that only apply to individual stocks?
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Oct 16, 2012 20:08
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So I am a few weeks in to a tax season internship at a medium sized firm now. I am enjoying myself and learning a ton, but I waste so much time fighting with software it is ridiculous. I frequently have to jump back and forth between the firm's cloud and the locally installed application just to complete a simple task. A few key pieces of software also like to crash if I have too many windows open. This is all minor stuff that is probably happening because I have a lovely intern computer and am not used to the software, but losing about an hour a day to computer problems is frustrating. Is this pretty common across all firms?
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Feb 22, 2013 17:39
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So over the past few years I've read and heard the opinion that big 4 careers are not as good as they used to be. Has anyone in the industry worked through this trend and found it to be true? It seems to me that big 4 has always been about either: A. Sacrificing work/life balance for a few years, getting your CPA, getting valuable experience, and moving on to something with better hours and most likely better pay. or B. Sacrificing work/life balance for a lot longer than a few years, getting your CPA, maybe transfer into a specialty group, maybe make partner if you can cut it, etc. BONUS OPTION: Decide that accounting isn't for you and leave (I totally respect this choice and may make it myself...who knows). Sure, things have changed, but the fundamental reasons that drive people to work at a big 4 don't seem all that different than they were in the past. I always hear people negatively comparing their careers to ibankers or that one kid who sold an app, but I feel like most people who would genuinely do well in accounting would not make it in those fields. I see the big 4 as an opportunity that will open doors and give me plenty of choices to advance my career, and I am happy with that, but it is hard not to get down on my own choices when so many people seem unhappy with theirs. I met up with some alumni for dinner the other week and it turned into a giant existential whinefest about how none of this work matters, the job sucks, I need to get an MBA, why didn't I study a science, and so on. Maybe my tune will change once I am working full time, but some of the daily complaints I hear at my current internship are absolutely ridiculous. Edit: Maybe absolutely ridiculous is the wrong expression...Complaints are understandable, but I feel that most of what I hear could be explained by "I work at a professional job with high expectations" rather than "I work at a public accounting firm and things would be so much better if I <insert anything here>." Mush Mushi fucked around with this message at 21:18 on Apr 6, 2013 |
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Apr 6, 2013 21:06
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Spartan421 posted:I'm doing internship interviews at my school and have five more to go out of like 10 or so. One firm contacted me back and I guess the rest don't want me. I even sent a post interview email out to one of the people I interviewed with but never got a response back. Anyway, I'm shying away from Big 4 and looking at the mid-sized and local guys. Any interview advice? These interviews have mostly been really laid back where the interviewer mostly just talks about their firm and just requires a general introduction out of you so I'm not exactly sure how to make a positive impression. My interview prep process when I was looking for internships went something like this: -Go through my resume and make sure I can talk about each item for a couple minutes. -Google "behavioral interview questions," and compile a list of experiences that I can use to answer a variety of those questions. Take a moment to memorize them if you can, so if you are asked a question, all you have to do is take a moment to decide what story answers the question best. -Have a great answer about why you want to be in accounting/audit/tax/etc. -Try to learn a little bit about the interviewing firm. If there is a certain group that is unique to that firm, mention how interesting that is! (even if it isn't) -Memorize a few questions to ask the interviewer. No questions = a lack of interest in the interviewer's mind. This might sound horrible, but I would always ask a question or two that I already knew the answer to just for the sake of asking a question at the end of my interview. Just be confident, enthusiastic and don't sound like a robot. Even if you don't use any of that stuff, you will be more comfortable because you feel prepared for anything. Don't worry about it too much. I know several people who struck out during on campus interviews. All of them now have jobs after taking the CPA exam and some minimal networking.
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Apr 7, 2013 18:47
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I just heard from a very reputable source that California will grandfather in CPA candidates with less than 150 units if they pass all four exams by the end of this year, giving a two year extension to complete the work experience requirement if you only have 120 units. That's great and all, but I wish they figured this poo poo out before hundreds of students decided that they needed to pay, and even move for grad school in order to comply with the new requirements. Every piece of guidance from the board of accountancy up to this point said that there would be no grandfathering. Everyone was aware that this was happening and planned accordingly. Now it seems none of that was even necessary.
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Jun 24, 2013 06:25
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http://goingconcern.com/post/good-news-future-california-cpas-who-were-totally-going-get-around-150-hour-thing-eventually That link sums things up. There is a possibility it won't happen--but it will.
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Jun 25, 2013 03:28
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Lemmi Caution posted:I have like 200 credits including 47 in business/accounting, no CPA work experience, and have not started studying for the exams yet. I don't suppose this has any implications for me. Even if it did, I guess the old path would require the 2 years work experience so it wouldn't really save me any time anyway. You live in California? It might. Under the old 120 unit path, you need 24 accounting units and 24 business related units--48 units total. Assuming this latest development goes forward, you can become licensed under this path if you pass all four exams by December 31 of this year, because you will be given a 2 year extension to get the work experience requirement. Previously, the word was that if you did not have ALL of the components for the license by the end of 2013, including 2 years of work experience, you were out of luck. If you don't pass all four parts by the end of the year, you get to comply with this bad boy: http://www.dca.ca.gov/cba/applicants/tip_sheet.pdf It doesn't matter how many credits you have. They need to be in the specific areas on that sheet. Unless you are prepared to go back to school, take a good long look at your transcript and see if you have 48 units that will qualify--24 accounting and 24 additional business related. You need those 48 units (to sit for the exam) and have to pass all four parts by Dec. 31, 2013, or your window to get the license under the old rules (without the new education requirements) might close. If this happens you'll have no choice but to comply with the new, very specific, 150 unit education requirement.  Edit: All of this applies to both of the old pathways: 120 units + 2 years of work experience, or 150 units + 1 year of work experience. You need to pass the exam by the end of the year in order to get an extension to complete the work experience requirement. Mush Mushi fucked around with this message at 06:14 on Jun 25, 2013 |
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Jun 25, 2013 05:43
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chupacabraTERROR posted:Depends on the market. In LA for example, KPMG tax is by far the smallest practice of the 4. You're gonna have to be more specific. Same in the Bay Area. My brain is completely fried right now. I'm just starting my internship in a tax specialty group and feel like I am learning hundreds of new things every day. Am I supposed to remember all of this stuff, or do I just need to know that there is a code section somewhere that says a thing? It's tough doing something brand new every day and going through the "ohmygod what am i looking at" process every time.
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Jul 10, 2013 04:30
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Mush Mushi fucked around with this message at 18:47 on Jan 15, 2021 |
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Aug 11, 2013 16:28
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Democratic Pirate posted:Hopefully you weren't the dude who puked on a Partner's shoes and ran off, but if your flight was on Sunday I'm assuming you're San Fran/San Jose office? Haha! I knew there had to be someone. Yeah I am in the Bay Area. Did you witness that puking incident? I was actually surprised at the amount of partying going on. We all just received the offer that we've been working for years to get, and the only requirement for the program was "don't be a dumbass." Yet, I would hear people in the room next to me talking about the best way to conceal their handle of vodka from the partners like they were the chaperones on a high school band trip. I had a lot of fun though. I was impressed by the resources and planning it must take to pull that off for four waves.
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Aug 17, 2013 20:30
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How silly is it to negotiate salary for a first year associate offer? Is it so silly that it just might work or is it just stupid?
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Aug 22, 2013 01:00
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abagofcheetos posted:Have you even experienced a busy season yet? If I was on the other side of the table I would laugh in the face of anyone asking for more money that hasn't even shown they can perform through one. Not really, no. I am happy with the offer, so I wasn't planning on asking, but someone I know at another firm suggested that I ask for more. I found that strange, since everything else I had heard up to that point was that offers are more or less the same and not really negotiable.
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Aug 22, 2013 05:05
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Diplomat posted:I will be graduating my bachelors this semester and I have already started taking my grad courses. Unfortunately the Big 4 does not recruit at my university. Does this mean there is no hope for me to get in to those firms? I currently work for a small tax firm under a CPA (<10 employees), would this experience coupled with a CPA make me a candidate a year or so down the road? I am also an officer of my universities Beta Aplha Psi chapter if that actually matter to the Big 4. I think it will be tougher to get a Big 4 gig, but it is definitely not hopeless. Only two of the four recruited regularly at my campus, but I accepted an internship (which led to a full-time offer) with one of the other two that did not have a presence at my school. I tracked down the contact info for a campus recruiter and drafted a thorough, but brief cover letter style email that outlined my plans to get the masters degree, pass the CPA exam before starting work, etc. "I have not had the opportunity to meet you in person, but I wanted to reach out regarding blah blah blah." You get the idea. An email is easy to ignore/delete, so if I were to do something similar again I might try to reach someone directly by phone. Back when I was still hunting, I actually called the main office line for a firm and asked to speak with someone from campus recruiting and connected that way. I'm not saying this will work for every recruiter out there, but it will work in some instances. If you can communicate why you're qualified and contact them before or during a recruiting cycle, I don't see why anyone would straight up tell you no. If you have a good relationship with any of your professors, you can also ask them if they can connect you with anyone. From my experience at a school that didn't have the best campus recruiting, being an officer + having a high gpa did matter, at least for getting that first interview. I think that industry jobs can be great depending on the company and your role. I wish I had considered some sort of F500 finance development rotation when I was still going through the recruiting process, but it is hard to consider anything but public accounting as a student, when that is all the school cares to promote. I'd say you should consider every firm that recruits from your school, no matter the size. See what kind of work they do. Many smaller firms have some kind of interesting niche. That type of experience can be leveraged into a job at a larger firm if they have a practice group that does the same work. Also try to get in touch with Big 4. It might not pan out, but you might be surprised too. I wish I had taken a closer look at industry. Some of those F500 financial planning/analysis or corp finance jobs can be pretty cool and set you up quite nicely for an MBA if that interests you.
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Aug 28, 2013 05:46
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Would all of you working in public accounting agree that taking 4-6 months off between graduating and starting at my firm to pass the CPA exam and maybe even have some fun is a good thing? Part of me thinks that the break would be too long and I would be missing out on a busy season worth of experience, but if I don't take a break then I'll be starting 3 weeks after graduation with almost no progress on the CPA exam.
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Apr 3, 2014 03:02
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Sorry, I don't think that I was very clear. I've already completed two internships at the same firm and received a full time offer. I just have a few start date options that are processed mainly through HR. I'm still struggling to see the benefit of starting as soon as possible, aside from having a few months more work experience and income (which in the context of an entire career won't amount to much). I thought it would be a smart trade off to take the time off and come in with the exam passed if I have that option, rather than stress about it. Has anyone done this and regretted it?
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Apr 3, 2014 04:17
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Congrats! I took my first section, REG, in July but my score isn't up yet. Does anyone in California know if the CBA lags a day or two behind the official score release target date? I am dying to know how I did before I take AUD in 5 days.
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Aug 21, 2014 22:16
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Banzai 3 posted:CPA exam passed and I missed Watt-Sells by a single point, but god is it good to be done with that thing. drat that sucks. Maybe they will adjust the average downward! Do you think there realistically was anything you could have done? I've scored a 94 and 98 on my first two sections, so I guess I am still in the running under last year's criteria. I can only study for about 7 hours or so before information goes in one ear and out the other. FAR is in a month so hopefully I can pick up the pace.
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Sep 10, 2014 17:21
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Waah. I recently started my Big 4 job. Is it normal to feel like you are just loving up for the first weeks until things become more routine? I was given a project with minimal guidance and while I understood the ultimate goal and the issues to be addressed, I had no idea what I was actually supposed to deliver, how detailed things should be, how much time I should actually spend researching vs. setting up a document to populate with information as it became available, etc... The sad part is, it wasn't really that hard. I feel like crap because I could have been far more effective with a 15 minute background on what was actually happening and where I should start. That lack of communication just killed me and I spent a day panicking about what to do (no one was around to help for a while). I guess I am fine with all of this so long as it is expected. Probably being too hard on myself.
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Nov 1, 2014 21:05
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Don't get me wrong. The experience left me so traumatized that the next time I see something similar I'll be a pro. 
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Nov 2, 2014 02:56
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