Welcome back, people. Stuffed with watermelon mint juleps, fireworks and Klynveldian meats, most of you probably returned to full stomachs and fuller inboxes. That said, I hope your day is as painstakingly slow as mine (HR is a beautiful thing).
My morning news feed (i.e. Caleb’s morning news round-up) contained a story that is all too familiar – graduating college with an accounting degree is a safe bet. Of course. This report could have been 10 days or 10 years old; the song and dance would be the same. Consistently one of the best (meaning safest) bets for an undergraduate degree, the report from National Association of Colleges and Employers that, “jobs in accounting paid an entry-level salary of $50,402.” (It should be noted that – rumor has it – NACE pays a circus monkey to regurgitate these statistics EVERY. SINGLE. YEAR.)
Not too shabby, 50 grand a year after college. This number obviously comes with a salt shaker, as those entering into a career in public need to factor in their location and the fact that the number is pulled upwards – at least to a degree – by private salaries. My beef is not with these numbers but with the parents, high school guidance counselors and university staff that use these numbers as a means to push their products on to naïve students. Alas, my list of Flakey Reasons You Should Be an Accounting Major:
“My (insert random acquaintance reference here) is an accountant, and he/she does just fine.” That’s wonderful for your barber’s cousin’s friend, but really the success of one accountant means nothing. Doctors are successful, as is the 15 year old kid bagging my groceries. This “Mr. Smith is successful” argument is generally used as a conservative reference to a job that is less popular. Quality of life is a relative term; so who’s happier, the produce bagger or the family tax accountant?
“You need to graduate with a degree that will earn you a job.” I understand this argument; however isn’t the point of college to study a subject which you actually like? Don’t get me wrong, I am all for being realistic about this, but the long-term consequences of studying a particular subject and focusing on an industry cannot be overlooked. This leads me to…
“You can work in any industry with an accounting degree.” I like Skittles. I am downright passionate about Skittles. Skittles are my life*. Is an accounting degree the only way to work for their producer, Mars Inc? Umm. No.
“You need a job to pay back your student loans.” No argument here, except for the one about overall crisis in higher education (you know, no big deal really). A recent CardRatings.com poll showed 36 percent of college graduates are carrying student loan debt on a credit card. Sleep soundly knowing the remaining 64 percent of the group is simply burdened by lower interest rates.
But I digress. The loans should be considered a necessary means to an end (i.e. – finding a job and career of interest). If you’re majoring in a subject so you can pay down the debt…that you took on…to earn…said degree…you’re vastly missing the point of going to college.
*Don’t judge.
I just got promoted as a senior associate (Big 4 – Tax) and currently studying to finish my IRS Enrolled Agent exams instead of the CPA since I didn't majored in something other than accounting. I don't have the credit requirements. While talking to my parents on the phone, they suggested that I should go for a masters degree in accounting and sit for the CPA exam in a few years.
At first, I thought “Great… I can pretty much kiss my youthful 20's good-bye.” This means when I'm not stuck in the office during busy season, I should make myself useful and take classes after work… Travel? Long vacations? Who needs it.
After I slept on it, it would not be a bad idea if the firm helps with the tuition expenses. The IRS enrolled agent status would allow me to be promoted to a manager later on, but let's face it. CPA is pretty versatile when it comes to its recognition in the accounting/finance industry. I can picture myself getting into an MBA program in my late 20's to mid – 30's, but if I am going to put myself through CPA exams, I'd rather suffer now and see where it takes me later.
the only problem? I enjoy the client-service part of my career, but I'm just not THAT sure about continuing on in public accounting. Maybe I'll end up somewhere random like a non-profit. I have no idea.
If anyone made a similar decision before, I'd love to know what you think
This is one dumb article. Flakey reasons isn't the half of it. Of course an accounting job is an excellent post graduate job – it pays well, helps a new graduate establish himself, helps pay off loans, is a great resume builder, etc. Oh wait – you have to work a ton of hours and sacrifice nights and weekends for about 1/3 of the year. Guess what…tough shit. That's life. Think of all the blue collars busting their asses doing manual labor for more hours and less pay than the whining pussies who frequently post to this site. Meanwhile these new hires are enjoying a ton of vacation and free steaks. For the record, I am a partner and I work at a Big 4 firm. I did my time, now do yours….it's worth it.
Of course a partner-type would say these things because he/she requires others to make his money for him…
That's just what he needs to recite to himself in the morning every morning to justify all the years of hell he put himself through, so that he doesn't accidentally wonder “should I have left for better opportunity like all my smart colleagues?”
Well, Mr. Partner, consider this: only one in 100 who enter the Big 4 will make partner. (That was the statistic a Big 4 partner told me when I was in the biz.) More relevantly, I saw some very good people NOT “make partner”. Making partner involved many subjective considerations, including, but not limited to, good looks, the support of an attractive spouse, an ability to “spin” the truth (lie through your teeth), and being lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time.
What your comment ignores, Mr. Partner, is that most people bust their @$$ and receive nothing in return. Most people but their @$$ and do NOT make partner, Mr. Partner. Making $60,000 when you're working an average of 60 hours a week effectively equates to earning $40,000 a year (cf. making $40,000 a year as a teacher while getting your summers off). The very fact that your comment is skewed and biased based on your OWN experience of being lucky enough to make partner while ignoring the statistics speaks to its intrinsic worth and demonstrates how making partner is as much a matter of luck as it is a matter of talent.
Do you want to waste your life on a one-in-100 shot?
I doubt a Big 4 partner would be posting here…If your actually a Big 4 partner, identify yourself and man (or woman) up…
I actually like this site, I am just pointing out that a Big 4 partner should have better things to do than post to this site (or any site for that matter)…
“Post to goingconcern.com or network myself to generate more work for the firm so I can maintain my pay & year end shares with out laying off the people who earn me my salary…post to goingconern.com”
But let's step back and think about this for a second… Isn't it a one-in-100 shot to even be hired as an associate at a Big Four accounting firm to begin with? I've seen some questionable individuals get hired over the better ones for various reasons. It's never fair, and that's life.
It's easy to point fingers at the partner, but it is what it is… they did their time, they worked their ass off, they were at the right place at the right time. (I'm not a partner.. just an “overworked” senior assoc.)
Not sure what firm you are working for, but I am workng long hours/weekends 75% of the year, and I am an A2. Oh and you sound very professional.
Plus, a pep talk: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulzllmsa2Fc
Agree with some of what you said…
That said, anyone who believes they receive nothing in return for working in Big 4 (and not making partner) is blind. Good experience, great resume builder, and making sexy time with other staff your first year or two out of college are three bonuses of working Big 4 for a few years.
Ex-Big 4 Manager
Who says the partner has to be a he?
Given that a whopping 16% or so of partners are women, and the sexist use of the term “pussies” (because having one makes you weak or something), it's a good bet that the partner is a he.
So National Public Ra…..excuse me…..NPR is doing a series of stories about recent college grads going into a tough job market and one of those stories is about an unemployed 22 year-old female accounting major. I hadn't heard of the school she attended in Ohio so I have no idea about its reputation but she believed all the hype about accounting and still can't find a job. A lot of comments suggested her problem is that she can't communicate well. Any thoughts on this woman's situation?
“Accounting Grad Didn't Figure On Job Rejections”
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?st...