Background – No prior work experience in accounting, all sections of the CPA exam passed (left previous job for family reasons, made $50K annually).
With that said, I applied to public accounting firms for a month, and then I accepted the first offer I received from a small firm in the Cleveland-Akron area of Ohio. Due to my lack of experience and general naivete I signed up for $30K a year.
Right now my life consists of bank recs, a few journal entries here and there, entering and paying bills (yeah basically I'm an A/R and A/P clerk), and a little bit of 1040 work. I'm about halfway to gaining the year experience for my license.
Firstly, just how bad am I underpaid? I'd venture to say I'm not a slave, but interns at big firms probably make more, and I'd say the guy that clears the leaves off the firm parking lot probably makes more than me too.
Secondly, how much of a moron am I for taking the job when I was offered that much money?
And lastly, should I just apply to Target now because I feel like the life-work balance will be so much better.
N.B. This comes from a person who finished college cum laude, is felony free, and is not a functioning alcoholic or drug addict (which kind of makes this worse).