<p>It's best to check the school's business/accounting website to see a list of firms that recruit on campus. </p>
<p>Actually, I would say a > or = 3.0 is typically good enough to get an interview at big 4. The big 4 has a high turnover rate, and they are always looking for fresh hires. There are certain positions within a big 4 firm that have GPA guidelines of 3.3 or greater, but Deloitte, for example, usually is around a 3.0.</p>
<p>I honestly think that the smaller firms, like BDO etc. have higher GPA requirements because they take in a smaller amount of people and usually are more selective.</p>
<p>Don't limit yourself to the big accounting firms though. There are plenty of great opportunities in the private sector. Check which big companies recruit for accounting as well.</p>
<p>Wake Forest has among the highest CPA passing rates in the nation</p>
<p>
[quote]
CALLOWAY GRADUATES RANK FIRST IN NATION ON CPA EXAM ? Graduates of Wake Forest?s Calloway School of Business and Accountancy rank first in the nation for their performance on the 2005 Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam, according to the most recent scores available from the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA). They rank first in the nation on three of the exam?s four sections: financial accounting and reporting (95.5 percent passing rate); auditing and attestation (90.9 percent passing rate); and regulation (95 percent passing rate). On the fourth section, business environment and concepts, Wake Forest students rank second in nation (95 percent passing rate). Wake Forest also ranks first in the nation for the number of candidates who passed all four sections of the exam (88 percent passage rate). Since the Calloway School began offering a master?s degree in accounting in 1997, Wake Forest candidates have consistently performed well on the exam, ranking first in the nation for five years and second in the nation for three years. This is the second consecutive year Calloway School students have been ranked first in the nation since the exam was reformatted in 2004. ?This has become a proud tradition at Wake Forest,? said Lee Knight, director of the Calloway School?s accountancy program and Hylton Professor of Accountancy. Knight says the exam was reformatted to better test the skills required of CPAs in today?s workplace. ?The new exam places more emphasis on research, communication and critical thinking skills,? Knight said. ?The computerized format requires technology skills also necessary for success in the quickly evolving field of accountancy.?
<p>A lot of those accounting scandals may have encouraged some students to get into accounting, but it also created new opportunities in the accounting area (ever hear of Sarbanes-Oxley or the PCAOB--neither of which existed prior to the accounting scandals?).</p>
<p>In addition to that, it created more opportunities in the legal and finance areas (greater oversight of M&A--and more legal work to advise the top executives how to insulate themselves against lawsuits in this area). Also, the recent options postdating scandal has created a lot of extra accounting work here in the Silicon Valley. Anyway, let's just say that the outlook for accounting careers is quite good at the present time.</p>
<p>ilovebusiness,</p>
<p>While Texas is the top ranked school for accounting, the salaries in Texas are notoriously low compared to other places in the country--and since most of the people graduating stay in Texas, I'm guessing that the average salary for Univ of Texas accounting graduates is only around $43,000 to $45,000. I'll let someone else look the exact number up and post it here.</p>
<p>P.S. I notice that the average undergraduate salary (all business programs) at Texas is $47,500 and that the average salaries for MPA (masters of public accounting) is $51,100 or so--meaning that the numbers above are probably pretty close. It said 77% of the MPA graduates stayed in Texas to work.</p>
<p>Bentley is very good as is most of the other schools noted in the top 25 rankings. However, I have said this before in other posts and will say it again: It doens't matter which school you attend as long as the Big 4 recruit there, which they do for most of the top 50 accounting programs.</p>
<p>The VASTLY more important criterion for jobs is your GPA. A strong GPA will get you a good accounting job over a mediocre one from the top school. The stronger the GPA, the better.</p>
<p>If there is a top feeder school near the office you want to work in I would go there. After interviewing in San Diego (grew up there) and Los Angeles (go to school here) for all the big 4, I found that they give heavy preference to local students.</p>
<p>Personally, I think Lehigh is a very good school in accounting. I have found out that Lehigh ranks at 6 in the BusinessWeek 's ranking of the best undergraduate University in accounting major , and even ranks higher than CMU.
So, what about your opinion about this school?</p>
<p>I don't really get how the rankings work. Let's say a school like Univeristy of Texas has an accounting program ranked higher than the program at UPenn or something, does that mean the UT candidate has a better chance of being recruited to a better company?</p>
<p>if you're talking IB or consulting UPenn wins hands down. and im just guessing but i dont think many kids who major in accounting at UPenn want to work at a Big4 firm.</p>
<p>
[quote]
if you're talking IB or consulting UPenn wins hands down. and im just guessing but i dont think many kids who major in accounting at UPenn want to work at a Big4 firm.
[/quote]
Indeed. Anyone thats lucky enough to be at a target would be shooting for IB or consulting, with big 4 as a super backup. As long as you know that the Big4 recruit, I wouldn't worry about not getting hired. Accountants are in HEAVY demand.</p>
<h2>"While Texas is the top ranked school for accounting, the salaries in Texas are notoriously low compared to other places in the country--and since most of the people graduating stay in Texas, I'm guessing that the average salary for Univ of Texas accounting graduates is only around $43,000 to $45,000. I'll let someone else look the exact number up and post it here."</h2>
<p>Ah...but when you can buy a 5000 square foot custom mini-estate loaded with amenities for under $100 a square foot, the notoriously low salary scales for those who choose to make their career in the State of Texas isn't really a crucial factor. Furthermore, as one who chose public accounting as a career in Texas and Louisiana, I can tell you the first 8-10 years you are paying your dues. Once you have been deemed to be on partner track, the compensation takes a definite turn for the better. And many go into public with no intention of remaining in public; they are just building their resume for the eventual switch to a lucrative position in private (usually with an audit client).</p>
<p>One other thing, UT-Austin has always had an incredibly strong accounting program. And it looks like caps on top ten percent auto-admits will finally be approved by the Texas Legislature which should open up more spots for oos candidates.</p>