How to get into Big4?

  • Creator
    Topic
  • #193091
    TheGuyCPA
    Participant

    So a little bit about my background.. I’m halfway through my CPA (FAR and REG done), I graduated from a target school, and have experience in mostly manufacturing and investment industry accounting. I have applied for the Big4 jobs posted on my school campus career center many times, have gotten a couple interviews, but never get passed the first interview because there were “stronger candidates”. How do I get passed this and ultimately get a job at a Big4?

    FAR - 80
    REG - 78
    AUD - 88
    BEC - 84

    State of Illinois Licensed CPA as of September 2015

Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 15 total)
  • Author
    Replies
  • #660713

    Be a hot girl.

    or

    Start working for a smaller public firm and pass remaining exams.

    I've got a friend who got his CPA, started at a smaller firm that eventually “let him go” 1.25 yrs into working for them… He was working for big4 3-4 months later. He currently hates his life.

    Good Luck!

    #660714
    TheGuyCPA
    Participant

    Lol I always hear about people hating their lives at Big4 but don't they realize so many others want to be in their shoes? That experience is invaluable!

    FAR - 80
    REG - 78
    AUD - 88
    BEC - 84

    State of Illinois Licensed CPA as of September 2015

    #660715
    thechapman
    Member

    what city are you in?

    Passed - 2014

    #660716
    TheGuyCPA
    Participant

    @thechapman I'm in Chicago, IL. Why do you ask?

    FAR - 80
    REG - 78
    AUD - 88
    BEC - 84

    State of Illinois Licensed CPA as of September 2015

    #660717
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    @thechapman… are you in chicago?

    #660718
    rp 12
    Participant

    Use LinkedIn, and put in your resume like “CPA exam passed – FAR, and REG”. If the HR search by using key words your resume could show up, and they might be interested.

    AUD - NINJA in Training
    BEC - NINJA in Training
    FAR - NINJA in Training
    REG - NINJA in Training
    AUD - 67, 62, 77 (lost credit), TBA

    FAR - 53, 48, 58, 62, XX

    BEC - 53, XX

     

    "Success in life comes when you simply refuse to give up, with goals so strong that obstacles, failure, and loss act only as motivation"

    AUD: 68, 62, 77✔ (expires 10/31/16)
    FAR: 53, 48, XX (retake 6/16)
    REG:
    BEC: 53

    #660719
    ibCPAsoon
    Member

    The front door.

    BEC - PASS JULY 2014
    FAR - PASS DEC 2014
    AUD - PASS FEB 2015
    REG - PASS MAY 2015

    #660720
    TheGuyCPA
    Participant

    @ibCPAsoon The EY building is literally across my building. What should I say when I get to their front desk?

    FAR - 80
    REG - 78
    AUD - 88
    BEC - 84

    State of Illinois Licensed CPA as of September 2015

    #660721
    Tripp11
    Member

    Figure out who those “stronger candidates” are and dispose of said candidates, which inevitably leaves you as the strongest candidate. Duh.

    AUD - 93
    BEC - 80
    REG - 86
    FAR - 83

    #660722
    TheGuyCPA
    Participant

    @Tripp11 excellent idea… if it were possible to even figure out who they were since I'm not currently in school or on campus.

    FAR - 80
    REG - 78
    AUD - 88
    BEC - 84

    State of Illinois Licensed CPA as of September 2015

    #660723
    Tripp11
    Member

    “Do. Or do not. There is no try.” – Yoda

    AUD - 93
    BEC - 80
    REG - 86
    FAR - 83

    #660724

    Just wait till you get to the Big4. You'll soon be asking how to get out of the Big4 🙂

    FAR - 84
    AUD - 76 (phew)
    BEC - 88
    REG - 77

    DONE!

    #660725
    TheGuyCPA
    Participant

    Getting out is not a problem once you have experience. Getting in for that experience is the challenge… well for me it as been.

    FAR - 80
    REG - 78
    AUD - 88
    BEC - 84

    State of Illinois Licensed CPA as of September 2015

    #660726
    fangruoyi
    Member

    I still remember my recruiting experience, it was the toughest time of my life but I think I learnt so much and also built my confidence during the process. At first I don't think I can get any job offer but I ended up with offers from 3 of the big4s. Here are some of my advices:

    Network is the key! Career fair also helps. When I was going through recruiting period I have coffee with 4-5 professionals every week. And remember meeting professionals for coffee is not only for network but also a chance for you to impress them before interviews.

    Be confident about yourself! I was not so confident about myself at first as my first language is not English and I am only 21 years old with little experience. Big4 wants employees that they will feel comfortable to present in front of clients or even be able to get new clients for the firm in the future, so being confident and a good communicator would definitely help.

    Know how to sell yourself. My need for work visa sponsor reduced my chance to land a job, but I was able to convince the recruiter that I can contribute more than the cost of sponsoring work visa. You need to convince yourself first why the firm should hire you, always remembering your selling point and “sell” yourself to your recruiter or interviewer. If you don't believe that you are the “strong candidate” how can you convince the employer that you should be hired?

    21-year-old try to pass all parts before turning 22!:)
    FAR April 1st 2015 -88
    AUD April 14th 2015 - 93
    BEC May 30th 2015
    REG Aug 25th 2015

    #660727
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    A PwC recruiter came to my accounting class and told us that everyone who is eligible should apply. I had an okay GPA – 3.5 so I decided, what the hell, why not. My sis was working at deloitte, her GPA was a 3.9. I thought I had no chance, plus I wasn't really interested because my sister was always coming home at odd hours of the night..

    Anyway, I applied on the last day possible and I was accepted for the first round interview. I wasn't involved in any business activities, no honors society or any Beta Alpha Psi crap.

    The first question the partner asked me was “How come you're not in BAP?” (apparently, 95% of all B4 recruits are from BAP at my school. There were 12 interns from my school and I was the only one not in BAP). I gave him some BS answer about how I like to interact with all types of people, not just business minded people. I told him about my participation in Street Fighter tournaments and that I helped set them up, coordinated them, set-up brackets, set-up video and put tournament footage on this cool new site called “YouTube.”

    Fortunately for me, he was super intrigued. He asked me who I played, and I said Dudley. He had no idea who that was, so I said he was kinda like Balrog. He said he loved Street Fighter and plays Ryu against his son. Really strange.. I got through to the second round, no video game talk this time around though. But a partner did ask me what my “most challenging class” was and as a Joke, I responded with Wine Appreciation. It's not that easy to take a test when you're half drunk on pinot noir. (I only mentioned this because I noticed he had bottles of wine above his desk).

    That's my story, I definitely don't recommend it to people nowadays.. maybe they were less picky in 2007..

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