Forum Replies Created

Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 4,750 total)
  • Author
    Replies
  • in reply to: Fired while studying for CPA #657886
    mla1169
    Participant

    OK highlights I'll leave the forum just for you. 10 WHOLE years in accounting? Wow.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: Fired while studying for CPA #657881
    mla1169
    Participant

    Oh well I was the moderator who said a CPA license doesn't make you invincible. Find it almost impossible to believe anyone would find that offensive. Ask around how many people with a CPA have a hard time finding a job, you'll be surprised that its not magic. People are shocked that employers aren't falling over themselves to make offers when they see those letters on a resume. Its not my opinion. Search this forum alone for people who are astounded that they have to really work hard to find a great job after they are licensed. Why would I make light of a credential that I hold, and that I sacrificed greatly for?

    But when I read comments like “joe schmoe in the HR dept who probably doesn't work there anymore because they are indispensable” and “they worked for it instead of sitting on the couch all day and looking for hand me downs.” it makes me think that new CPA's put themselves on a major pedestal and that's fine but DON'T expect anybody else, even a measly unimportant HR person to see that pedestal. Trust me when I say nobody in other fields looks up to or worships us. You'll agree in a few years I promise.

    Again, I AM a licensed CPA. I know very well what it takes to become one, I walked the walk my friend. At the end of the day its one of the more powerful tools in your toolbox and nothing more. What you do with that license is what matters. I gave so much for those three letters, but I'm not better or more important than the person who cleans my office at night. We all put on our pants one leg at a time. I also know a bit of humility goes a lot further in the real world than degrees, licenses, grades or scores.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: Score confirmation email? #656929
    mla1169
    Participant

    Did you happen to check your junk email folder? I think I've read of people finding them in there.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: I need help with choosing MAcc program #656810
    mla1169
    Participant

    Try SNHU. I did my Macc online and I seem to remember they did something for military, not sure if it was just navy (wouldnt make a lot of sense but for some reason Navy sticks out in my memory) or all branches.

    Thank you for serving!

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: Responding to Thank you notes #656753
    mla1169
    Participant

    Son I'm not assuming anything. So don't send thank you notes or better yet make sure to explain that your time is as valuable as theirs. I'm trying to explain the way things,actually work instead of entertaining some notion of the way things should be. I've been in the workforce longer than most here, and think reality is a better take than the whole “everybody gets a trophy” mentality.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: Fired while studying for CPA #657873
    mla1169
    Participant

    Martin it frankly wouldn't bother me in the least. Being a full time mom is a career choice. If someone's career choice doesn't align with the hiring manager so be it. This is part of the reason I chose to be away from my children 50 hours a week when they were little and more as they got older. anticipated the consequences of the decision.as for how complicated life is, after 45 years I am well aware thank you. One of the ways life is unfair is that many if not most employers,would prefer a young single guy with no commitment. You don't have to like it but it is a fact. Besides the hiring manager only sees,the gap not the story behind it,so it's a moot point

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: Fired while studying for CPA #657867
    mla1169
    Participant

    Its easy to understand people taking time off to pass the exams, thats not even the question.

    The question is this, even though some seem to believe having those three letters after your name makes you somehow invincible in the job market, usually you are competing against others with a CPA when vying for a job. So if I have 12 candidates, and two have a gap in employment for WHATEVER reason, I am going to go with a pool of 10 people who have no gaps in employment and have their CPA unless one of the people with a gap in employment has some job experience that is more relevant than the others.

    When youre looking for a job everything that a hiring manager has time to see and evaluate is surface level only. You could be the hardest worker who puts in the most effort and that will not even be a factor in a hiring decision because they're not spending 40 hours per candidate getting to know them.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: Fired while studying for CPA #657860
    mla1169
    Participant

    Don't ever give more than “it was a decision that was best for my family at the time”, you don't discuss kids at an interview, ever. Right wrong or otherwise being a mom, particularly a single mom will work against you in the interview process (I say this from personal first hand experience, I am not projecting or assuming this.)

    As for your husbands debt if you were married at the time, you're stuck with it on your credit report (also from first hand experience) just hope he's keeping up with it because if he's falling behind unfortunately that can also work against you as most employers run credit reports.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: Bonuses in Industry #657369
    mla1169
    Participant

    “The general thought is that they are pretty much guaranteed unless something happens in the economy, the firm misses their profits targets/loss money or having a not so great job performance.”

    I hope you don't believe this. In some companies that may be true but in many others, the criteria to achieve the bonus is a moving target in order to make the bonus expense exactly what the powers that be want the bonus expense to be. Good year with sales won't mean a bonus if the company is trying to reduce overhead. What was a bonus on sales over $1m could very well become a bonus on sales over $5m the following year, nearly unattainable.

    Bonus structure like everything else is determined by the stakeholders in the company.

    That said if youre considering a company that has a long track record of bonus payouts, it is a compelling arguement to accept the job.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: Responding to Thank you notes #656745
    mla1169
    Participant

    Well there are a couple of things at play. First, the time issue. No the interviewers time isn't more valuable than yours, BUT he or she likely has less of it. You as an interviewee have to send ONE lousy thank you note, but the interviewer may have talked to 12 or more people. When you go on 2-5 interviews in the same day, then you're on a level playing field time wise.

    Second, sometimes its better for the interviewer not to close the door completely. Example, my previous employer hired someone ( I wasn't involved in the decision) who turned out to be a total dud that couldn't even print from excel. He was fired about 3 days later because using excel at an EXPERT LEVEL was clear in the job listing and he flat out lied.

    So the company was able to call the runner up and she started a week later and was FABULOUS. Had she not been available we might have gone to #3 or 4 on the list.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: Responding to Thank you notes #656736
    mla1169
    Participant

    Further the thank you note isn't at ALL about thanking the interviewer for their time. If that's what a candidate thinks, then you have no clue how to write a thank you note and really need not bother.

    The first sentence, and closing sentence are thanking the interviewer for their time. The rest of the email is a marketing pitch of yourself. You are explaining why YOU are the best person for the job, and how after discussing the position in depth how your skills and talent are a perfect fit. You are bringing up key points from the interview to demonstrate that you are well aware of what will be expected from you. And if you're smart, you will ask a question or two that you thought of after the interview.

    If you talked to multiple people you PERSONALIZE individual emails because what you need to “sell” in the thank you letter will not be the same. (i.e. Judy cares most about your ability to provide reporting data but John cares most that you understand ratios).

    I think people who lament that thank you notes are a waste of time are not utilizing them properly. If you just send a note that says thanks for talking to me, you're wasting your time.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: The SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT Study Element Is??? #656975
    mla1169
    Participant

    The answer to your question is that it will be different for every single person and every single exam. I passed FAR which is known as “the beast” using only the MCQ on CPAreviewforfree.com. Not everybody will find that effective. For AUD, I read the book, did the MCQ but it wasn't until I added the ninja notes that I passed. You can get 100 answers here that all insist watching the lectures are critical but that doesn't mean that watching the lectures will work for YOU.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: Combination of 2 Subjects #656710
    mla1169
    Participant

    Unless you have to travel internationally to sit for the exams and are trying to minimize your travel study for only one exam at a time. Studying 2 simulltaneously rarely results in anything positive.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: Responding to Thank you notes #656727
    mla1169
    Participant

    KB, they don't expect anything lol. The point is to somehow make yourself stand out among the dozens of interviewees for every position, the candidate applied to the job so their interest level is perfectly clear. If I interview someone who follows up with a thoughtful and personalized thank you, all of the sudden they're the object of my attention while I'm reading. If you actually want that job the more the interviewer is exposed to you,

    There is no circumstance in life where a person is obligated to reply to a sincere thanks. If you expect a reply, your thank you note was not at all sincere.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    in reply to: Responding to Thank you notes #656724
    mla1169
    Participant

    Sending a thank you is practically mandatory. Whoever said it wasnot advisable was not an expert or you took it out of context.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 4,750 total)