Dawgie

Naw I'd rather study international business to prep myself to record journal entries at an american corporation at another country. I'm sure it's going to teach me IFRS.

secretfire

"I actually have a question which you may or may not have covered before, but in the big 4, are you able to have a life? or do they require you to work 10 hours days and a lot of weekends?"

You're required to have a certain amount of "billable hours" (hours you can charge a client)' a week. I was told it's usually 40 but spikes during the busy season. After interning with Deloitte Tax for only three days, my opinion is that if you are serious about moving up the ladder (lattice?) then yeah expect to work long hours and on weekends during busy season/before deadlines. They tell you straight up so you know what you're getting yourself into. Deadlines come first..that's just the nature of the client service business. But hey that's life. I'm sure I'll have more insight as the summer progresses.

OKgirl

Thanks for all the great info so far!

I was wondering if you possibly knew of a resource that described all the different areas of accounting and which would be best for you based on your skills and interests. I would really like to learn about all the different areas!

The school I'm attending isn't AACSB accrediated, but it is by the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE). I read that you think that in the future, everyone is going to want AACBS graduates. Do you think this could be a problem for me later in life or would I sort of be grandfathered in?

I don't know if you have answered this yet, but would there really be any benefit for me attending my school's MBA program, besides the fact that I'd have enough credits for the CPA exam?

GlennRyan1210

Taxguy, I believe your information on "needing" 150 units to take the CPA is wrong. In california there are 2 pathways to take the exam:

Pathway 1

Designed for individuals who will practice only in California and requires:


* A bachelor's degree;
* 24 semester units in accounting-related subjects;
* 24 semester units in business-related subjects (accounting courses beyond the 24 required units may apply toward the business units);
* Passing the Uniform CPA Exam;
* Two years of general accounting experience supervised by a CPA with an active license; and
* Passing an ethics course.


Pathway 2

If you are licensed under this pathway, the majority of other states will recognize your license. If you think that someday you might want to practice in another state, Pathway 2 may provide you the professional mobility you desire. Requirements:


* A bachelor's degree;
* 24 semester units in accounting-related subjects;
* 24 semester units in business-related subjects;
* 150 semester units (or 225 quarter units) of education;
* Passing the Uniform CPA Exam;
* One year of general accounting experience supervised by a CPA with an active license; and
* Passing an ethics course.




....you only need 150 units for pathway 2.

taxguy

GlennRyan, I don't know about what goes on in California. However, for most states that I have seen, folks will need 150 credits to become CPA. Maybe California is different.As I noted in my original post, all students should check with their respective state society for the requirements to sit for the CPA and to become a CPA. Each state does vary a bit, although the 150 credit requirement seems to be a widespread requirement in most states.

OKgirl, see my post numbered 536 among other previous posts that address your question.

sp1212

You could also always get the Masters in Accounting to fulfill the 150 credit hours.

Some people say it's useless but I don't think so at all.

-More opportunities to get a job in a big 4/national/regional firm instead of an industry job.
-Higher salary potential (even if it's not much).
-Great job placement, anywhere in the country (depending on how good your program is).
-Better review to pass the CPA exam.
-Only 1 year.

But it's better if you don't have to end up paying a lot of money for it.

pokey07

Does anyone know how Big 4 recruiting is for Masters in Accounting programs? I won't be starting the program until the fall, so I won't have any GPA or courses in Accounting when they come for fall recruiting (for internships). Will I still be eligible for interviews? I'm unsure if Masters recruiting is similar to undergraduate.
I was also told the Big 4 does recruit at the school, but I fear the program may not carry enough prestige to get me that interview during fall recruiting.

pokey07

I want to actually add to my above question. Would it be more suitable for me to get an MBA or MAcc? The MAcc programs I have looked at seemed more focus on just getting you to past the CPA exam, and less so on the actual jobs.

taxguy

Get a MACC over an MBA IF you want to work in accounting.

Johhny Vue

I was recommended by my adviser to get an MBA over MACC.

Dawgie

Expand Johhny Vue.

pokey07

Between the MAcc and the MBA, it seems that the MBA programs I am looking at are more focused on placing you in a good job while the MAcc programs are more focused on getting you to pass the CPA exam. The con is the MBA programs are about 35 more credits than I feel I need right now. But if it means Big 4, I'd rather do it.

a_mom

What did you major for under? Do you intend to get an ACCOUNTING postion in big 4? I don't see why big 4 will hire you if you don't have course work in accounting, unless you're doing non-accounting stuff. MBA program won't help if you have no accounting background, so listen to taxguy. I'm curious what information you provide to your advisor for your career goal.

pokey07

Post-MAcc program, I will have Accounting coursework. Enough to sit for the CPA exam.

jonahrubin

Not talking from personal experience, but from looking at lots of potential MAcc and MBA programs and from comments on this site and others:

1. Some posters have claimed the Big Four will be less favorable towards MBA's because if you have one you are probably less committed to the accounting profession than someone with an MsAcc.

2. MBA programs with concentrations in Accounting are often going to be very repetitive for someone with a BBA in Accounting. So, particularly if you are looking at Big Four as a stepping stone to non-public accounting type jobs in the long run, get a BBA in Accounting, and an MBA in something else(but make sure you have all your requirements for the CPA, for me that's two classes beyond what our BBA in accounting gives, plus whatever you need to get to 150 total hours). Again, I don't know if they're going to want to give a job to a guy with a BBA in Accounting and an MBA in Finance. Maybe they realize now that nearly everyone they hire is going to be gone in 5 years anyway so it doesn't matter if you leave to be an accountant at a regional firm or a zookeeper as long as you do a good job while you are there. I really don't know.

3. From what I've seen, there are plenty of programs at the Master's level for people who have BBA's in Accounting. These are distinct from those which are basically CPA mills for people with other types of degrees. UIUC for example has a Master's in Accounting Science for these types and a MS in Accountancy for the rest. I estimate the majority of my classes when I get my master's will not really be CPA prep. Particularly if I go heavily into the taxation track. Obviously if you haven't already taken 6 hours of intermediate accounting, auditing, accounting information systems, etc etc, then your MAcc is going to be heavily CPA oriented. So I think as long as you look before you leap, you can get a Master's degree in Accounting that is not just a glorified CPA prep...OR if that's what you really need then you can probably get exactly that, too.