[ShmeePA]

Let me preface my dilemma by saying that I am 24 years old and graduated college less than a year ago.

So I was just offered a position as an audit associate for a top 10 national accounting firm to start about a month from now. The pay is competitive and I am excited about the opportunity.

My dilemma: I currently hold a job as a staff accountant for a Medical Staffing Company. My current pay is larger than what it would be at the accounting firm plus other pros include a great work-life balance, room to grow within the company, close proximity to my home. A huge con right now is that my job isnt challenging, what I am doing on a weekly basis are tasks that just repeat week in and week out.

The main pro I gauge from the accounting firm is the actual experience and knowledge that i would gain and benefit from, which in turn will help me in the future.

I have until Friday to give them my decision.

Any input on my dilemma would be a great help!

Thanks

BEC-84
FAR-86
AUD-87
REG-79

[005]

go public, get the experience, get the CPA, and then jump over to private in a few years; normally, you'll advance quicker this way

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[ijustwant76]

Pro: Better upward mobility in private with Big 4 or Top 10 experience.

Con: Most people do Big 4 to get INTO private eventually. So you're where you want to be. But your upside will be limited.

Basically, the way I see it, this is short term vs long term issue. If you want to be “big”, you bet long term and go top 10 firm. If you're focused on your “now” life, you stay where you're at.

[greg422]

If you are successful where you are now, have a good reputation and can see the “big picture” no one will care whether you are from Big 4 or John Doe CPA firm. From personal experience, sometimes employers like someone who was working at a smaller company/CPA firm and was “hands on” instead of someone who could have spent 2 years mailing bank confirmation and ticking things off, without being involved in high level decisions.

REG - 82
AUD - 97
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FAR - 84
DONE!

[taxman89]

“A huge con right now is that my job isnt challenging, what I am doing on a weekly basis are tasks that just repeat week in and week out.”

that con is going to be there in public too. only reason to go to public now would be to gain a broader experience base. in my company go up through the ranks internally only takes about 2 years longer to hit manager than it does for someone coming from big 4 (ie we hired a manager with 7 years exp from big 4 compared to the internal manager that was just promoted to manager after 9 years). So you dont gain THAT much but you do gain a bit of time to promotion compared to staying internally

you could also try to move around within your company and increase your knowledge base that way. If you do that, you dont have to give up your work life balance and it becomes mroe challenging because you are doing different stuff….just my $.02

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AUD: 61-67-75 (Thanks ninja aud)
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[tomq04]

I don't have a public background, just observations from my peers.

Don't be so quick to jump into public, particularly when you have a comfy job. That being said, if that is the direction you want to head (long term focus) GO FOR IT! If you love the company you're at, and enjoy your compensation and work/life balance, then don't give it up…those things are hard to come by.

REG- (1) 76
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AUD- (3) 70, (4) 75
BEC- (6) 75

[Anonymous]

Don't take a comfy job for granted. If I had known how much I hated public accounting, I would have gone private and skipped public altogether. It's extremely draining- get ready to say goodbye to most of your hobbies/social life.

[Anonymous]

I think the question really comes down to would you be happy with your current income and current position in five years? Because breaking the ceiling is the reason that many (if not most) accountants “do their time” and get a CPA in public accounting. To move to the higher paying and management level accounting positions, you simply must have a CPA and a number of years of public under your belt.

It will suck in every way imaginable. But it opens doors.

I guess my best suggestion is to think/imagine of the positions/jobs you want to hold five/ten/fifteen years from now. Go look at job postings for those types of jobs. Do they require a background in public accounting (or even say “preferred”, because lets be real, they wouldn’t put it on the job description if they weren’t hoping for that)? If so, there’s your answer.

[Anonymous]

And remember – if you hate it, moving back into industry is EASY.

It's not so easy to get an oppotunity (especially with a top ten firm). There's people on this forum that would kill for that chance.

[Anonymous]

And remember – if you hate it, moving back into industry is EASY.

It's not so easy to get an oppotunity (especially with a top ten firm). There's people on this forum that would kill for that chance.

[Anonymous]

Well as Warren Buffet said: “Taking a job just for the experience is the equivalent of saving sex until you are old”

I personally think that public accounting doesn't have the greatest work-home balance but if you are bored at your current job, then I think public accounting would be a good switch since you are constantly being challenged with new projects and situations.

[TiffaNiffaNi]

I think one important thing to consider is where you are in regard to taking and passing the CPA.

It's going to be a lot tougher to do so in a new, “non-boring” job…In my opinion, if the pay is less than what you are making now + more responsibility (while – I assume – you are trying to pass this beast of an exam), it's a no brainer. Stay where you are for the time being. Just because you don't go with this new place, doesn't mean you can't pursue public when 1. you are done with the exam and 2. a better offer is on the table.

FAR: 7/17/14- 79
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REG: 10/1/14- 88
BEC: 11/10/14- 85

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[StephAV]

If I were in your position, I'd have a candid open discussion with your boss about the decision. Is there room for growth at your current company. I think that public accounting will likely be more challenging because you are going from one engagement to the next versus the same tasks all the time. Would you be happy in your current position if they were committed to your professional growth? Are they willing to make that commitment?

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AUD - 8/14 - 80!!!
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[fuzyfro89]

If you're unhappy where you are at today, I hate to break it to you, but you probably won't be happier in a year.

Decide for yourself where you want the option to be in 3-5 years, how hard/unpleasant you are willing to work in order to get there (and beyond), and factor that in.

The biggest difference between private/public has a lot to do with perception. Many hiring managers perceive those with public experience to be more qualified (right or wrong, I'll let you decide). A lot of job descriptions even go so far as to require public experience, and often Big 4 experience.

It really depends on your goals, and whether there's a reasonable chance some time in public will help you get there faster vs. the additional workload you will have for at least a few years.

[h0wdyus]

I agree with TiffaNiffaNi

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FROM NJ

[Tux]

Base your decision on your longer term goals. What career path do you want?

Don't base the decision on pay right now. If you take a pay cut, you're young enough to make up for it in no time.

Another option, besides the two that you mentioned, is to stay where you are, for now, and keep looking for new opportunities.

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[Author]

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