<p>I feel so naive. I don’t view myself as, nor do I look particularly old. I had no idea age was such a factor in accounting, of all places! lol. I feel like I stepped into an alternate reality. Don’t you guys know that 60 is the new 40?</p>
<p>Anyway, accounting is my major, regardless of my age. I hope it will take me to big places in business. </p>
<p>If you read my first post you’d notice that my interest is not necessarily at Big 4. Of course, it’s nice to say “Big 4”, and the experience would be great. I do know someone who works at Deloitte. She started working for them last year. She is older (in her 40’s!!) but she has a good 15 years of experience. She does work long hours.</p>
<p>But, efficiency expertise/ business consulting is my true goal.</p>
<p>But, I do need experience working with the Big 4 to get a business consulting position- in accounting or finance. Go figure. If anyone asks, I’m really 23. lol.</p>
<p>Oh so you are in audit huh? The travelling is overrated. That just means you weren’t cool enough to hang out in the tax office for 90 hours a week during tax season. JK</p>
<p>I am working as a tax staff for a regional CPA firm. Big 4 isn’t my thing I really like the people I work with and I only work a 60 hour a week busy season. As I remember it they kicked you off some forums.</p>
<p>Advisory services are cut throat to get into Samantha. Generally the big 4 hire from ivies and other top schools to get advisory people. The advisory people get paid more too. Honestly I don’t know much about advisory. I know one guy that is advisory at a national firm. He started as an accountant but he failed his cpa 4 times so they moved him to advisory. He is smart as a whip and young. He had no prior business experience but graduated summa cum laude. </p>
<p>My firm has advisory services but the services are rendered by actual CPA’s not specialists. In 5-7 years if I am still here I will probably do some advisory.</p>
<p>Hi guys! I don’t know if this is the right place to ask this but it seems like a lot of accounting related discussion has generated here. When I entered college I never thought about becoming an accountant, I entered as an undeclared major. However, after more research, I think with the security an accountant job has to offer, I want to pursue this career in the future. But the problem I have is that I attend a UC school in California, and my school does not offer the accounting major. </p>
<p>However, I heard that I could graduate with a degree in another field and then complete an accounting certificate, which usually takes around 2 years to complete? For the accounting certificate, the classes just center around accounting/business. I’m not sure if this question has been asked before, and if so, I apologize, but if I attain my four year degree and then obtain a certificate in accounting, where would that place me in the potential job market? Would I be just as marketable as a recent graduate with a bachelor’s in accounting or is a certificate viewed in a lesser light? I’m just wondering if this is a worthwhile path to pursue, because as of now, it’s my only option because my school does not offer an accounting degree. Thank you!</p>
<p>The two programs I am looking at btw are UCLA and UCR extension programs for an accounting certificate</p>
<p>I do know that management consulting isn’t something your going to get into out of UNLV. My firm only does advisory which I have never participated in. I am not in the big 4 and I never plan to be in the big 4. I know the big 4 recruit at most state schools for auditors and tax people not consultants. Oh my friend who failed the cpa 4 times is a consultant not advisory! LOL He does consulting for telecommunications companies. His firm is much larger than mine though.</p>
<p>A major in accounting, and another major in economics OR A major in accounting, a minor in economics and another minor in finance</p>
<p>What would open up the most opportunities for me as well as make more money in the long run? Currently I have a cumulative 3.85 GPA and plan to work for the big four after I graduate.</p>
<p>Dawgie, I expect better from you. Some of the “Advisory” practices have branches that are very much like the “consulting” you are describing. CFO services, Performance, and Transaction services can all be very much like “consulting”.</p>
<p>Advisory won’t do as much executive level strategy like a MBB would be doing, but some branches of advisory practices definitely touch on “consulting”.</p>
<p>Risk and IT however are audit support sections of advisory that are not really “consulting”.</p>
<p>Looking for some advice here. I’m currently a Cal State Fullerton student (accredited by AACSB for accounting) majoring in Business Administration with an emphasis in Accounting. I’m currently averaging a 3.5 GPA at CSUF and a 3.4 GPA overall. I picked Accounting not because it was some unholy passion of mine, but because it opens the door for the most opportunities, especially coming out of a state school (Cal State).</p>
<p>Based on the above, I have a few questions.</p>
<p>1) Do you think I should change my emphasis if I want to keep Law School a possibility? I’m hoping that top law schools consider a 3.4 or 3.5 GPA in accounting more rigorous and competitive than a 3.7 in marketing for example. </p>
<ol>
<li><p>Assuming I maintain my current averages, will the Big 4 be a possibility?</p></li>
<li><p>Do you think I should add an additional emphasis such as finance or information systems…even though I know I’m coming back for an MBA degree if I don’t get into law school?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Illicitx, please read over the thread found in the law school forum entitled, “What we learned about law school admission.” It is on the second page of the forum.</p>
<p>In that thread, I noted that law schools do NOT consider the hardness of your major in admission decisions. 90% of admission is based on primarily the LSAt and secondarily the GPA …period, with some soft factors coming in on the margins. Thus, a 3.7 in marketing will be better for law school admission than a 3.4 in accounting, I am sorry to say.</p>
<p>I do think that your 3.4 puts you in the realm of possibility for big 4 jobs. However, don’t go any further below this. </p>
<p>I don’t think that adding an additional finance emphasis would help.</p>
<p>I have a few questions in terms of your response, it would be much appreciated for additional feedback!</p>
<p>1) I do have work experience, with my most recent being at the corporate office of a global logistics firm. I received two promotions and a third promotion which I declined because they wanted me to move to Arizona. I have great recommendations from directors in different departments (Revenue Accounting, Sales, Implementation and International Services to be exact). I was pretty much the go to guy in my department. Do you think this work experience can position me with a big 4 or law school in lack of my GPA of 3.4?</p>
<p>2) How easily is grade inflation noticed and how much of it is frowned upon? I was considering in throwing another emphasis in business (Marketing, Information Systems, Finance) or branching out and doing a minor in public relations or communications. Accounting has the lowest GPA average at our school…currently a 2.4. </p>
<p>3) My school allows us to pick a few of our elective accounting courses. What are the important accounting courses to take that would be beneficial? Is there a certain core that one should always take? A certain set that ones should always avoid?</p>
<p>4) This is a very important and my last question as of right now. How much accounting knowledge do you need to retain in order to receive a position with a Big 4 or local firm? What I mean is, if you do an internship or get hired directly, does the training process cover what you need to do? I understand that you remember concepts and accounting contains GAAP, etc…but how much of this crap has to be remembered from the top of our brain without resorting to the internet or notes? Hope it doesn’t sound like a stupid question.</p>
<p>to get at your #2 - some firms will analyze your transcripts, but most don’t (at least after you get an offer). i know someone who go straight C’s & D’s in every single accounting class in his/her 2nd to last year, and he/she got offers at every single firm. </p>
<p>so really, you only need to get a good gpa in the years that happen before internship recruiting season (if you get an internship and then an offer). </p>
<p>Also, i think it is a waste of time/money/effort to take easy classes just for their impact on your gpa. its dumb. take classes that you think will be useful in the long-run.</p>
<p>I don’t know any firm that would hire someone that got C’s and D’s in their accounting courses. They wouldn’t even be able to be licensed as a D does not count towards your 150 unit requirement. I am sure unique cases do apply though. I know of a lady that worked entry level for a national firm at a premium salary even though she had mostly C’s. However, at the time she was the wife of the lieutenant governor. This was about a decade ago my tax professor had a lot of funny stories to tell about how everyone hated her.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t recommend going to law school unless you get into a really good law school or you have someone else that can shell out 200k+ on your behalf. A partner at my firm was joking the other day about how she is making more $ than most of the attorney’s she works with. Once that 100k big law salary pays your student loans and taxes it isn’t really that great any more. Also you lose out on deductions for the interest with a high income. However that is assuming you get a big law job with a high income. They are harder to come by nowadays and a small firm salary won’t pay your student loans and afford you a high quality of life. </p>
<p>A 3.5 gpa is mediocre for a top law school. You will have to do great on the LSAT to get in. </p>
<p>I never plan on going to law school. I have two friends that just graduated from a decent tier 2 passed the bar and make around 10k more than me per year. After paying their student loans they make much less than me. Also tax accountants do work that is very similar to an attorney when you are doing tax planning and advising. I have about 2 years until I get to meet with clients and perform those services. For now I just take orders from the partner and work on their stuff.</p>
<p>well, if they are doing the hiring (during internship recruiting season) before the student has taken that many upper level courses, then the student could very easily get an offer, and then do very poorley from there on out.</p>
<p>I thought it was weird that the internship process has moved along pretty far before anyone has finished their first Intermediate Accounting class. </p>
<p>Before that they’ve taken Financial and Managerial and some laughably easy general business classes. Nothing there is a good indication of any ability. Seems like you might be getting a lot of duds.</p>
<p>The schools average for majors in accounting is a 2.4 </p>
<p>I’m currently at a 3.5</p>
<p>I am intrigued by the field of law. Even if the money was not very good, I could see the ability to be motivated daily on the job. I love the business world too. I just can’t risk doing some ******** degree like political science or criminal justice just for the ability to increase my GPA. I’m keeping accounting as a backbone in case I do not do well on the LSAT.</p>