<p>Question… if I attended one of the big4’s summer leadership programs, should I put that on my resume? Would it look favorable (that I attended one, i.e. was qualified to go to one since you have to be preselected and interview for it) or that I’m showing favoritism towards one firm and the other big4 will automatically think I will take an offer with them and not even look past my resume? </p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Summer/sophomore leadership programs are the hardest to get into. They take considerably less people than intern and full time, so yes, it is looked upon very favorably. It does not show favoritism, you just need to have an answer ready when they ask “why us.”</p>
<p>^ I love you! I’ve been looking for this answer everywhere, not even my school advisers know what to tell me. Thanks :)</p>
<p>How is demand in this economy for CPA/Accountants? I was just reading over CPAnet, and it seems there are a lot of people without jobs. I know the recession obviously hit everyone hard, but am wondering how hard CPA’s are getting hit.</p>
<p>Should I major in Accounting if some career(Strong Interest Inventory) and personality(MBTI) tests say it is not a good fit for me? </p>
<p>That’s really the only thing that is making me hesitant about accounting, all the career/personality tests I’ve taken mention it is not a good fit for me. </p>
<p>I’ve taken both intro courses, Financial and Managerial and I did really well in them, and did not find them to be dreadful. </p>
<p>Honest and sincere advice appreciated.</p>
<p>Pokey07 - I posted a thread about a month ago that had a link to a study done by the AICPA on trends in the accounting profession that you may want to look at. Yes, the accounting industry is being hit with the recession, however, the profession as a whole has a very optimistic job outlook. Also, having a CPA vs not having one will play a large factor in your job outlook/job stability.</p>
<p>AnyColour - I took one of those tests in high school and was told that I should go into a design field like engineering or architecture. I tried both in college, and disliked both. Bottome line is that those tests are not perfect and in many cases you won’t really know until you get to college and take a few classes. If you are in college or are going to be soon, I suggest taking the intro accounting courses. These will help you determine if you like/understand accounting.</p>
<p>Oh ok thank you taxdad. I definitely plan on pursuing my CPA designation, and even further schooling if necessary!</p>
<p>I was reading this article about how there are good paying jobs out there but recruiters cant find the people they want. I was surprised when I read this…</p>
<p>It’s become especially hard to find accountants, health care workers, software sales representatives, actuaries, data analysts, physical therapists and electrical engineers, labor analysts say.</p>
<p>and </p>
<p>At PricewaterhouseCoopers in Chicago, there’s a shortage of qualified applicants for management jobs in tax services, auditing and consulting. Rod Adams, the company’s recruiting leader, said huge pay packages on Wall Street siphoned off lots of business school graduates earlier this decade.</p>
<p>“That made our pipeline more scarce,” he said.</p>
<p>Some of the openings at PricewaterhouseCoopers pay around $100,000 and don’t even require graduate degrees just specialized accounting certifications or other credentials.</p>
<p>Formerly successful bankers or hedge fund managers don’t necessarily qualify.</p>
<p>“We’ve gotten a lot more resumes, but they haven’t been the right people,” Adams said.</p>
<p>Entry level accounting/auditor wage in Texas is: $18.60 per hour</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.tracer2.com/admin/uploadedPublications/863_Texas_2008.xls[/url]”>http://www.tracer2.com/admin/uploadedPublications/863_Texas_2008.xls</a></p>
<p>I will apply several schools to study accounting.First thing first is money then I choose schools among AACSB schools.Is it right thinking?
how about truman state university or louisiana tech University or university of south Dakota? since these univ.'s tuition are fit for for me if not considering scholarship .I do not care location.any one know these schools?
thans a lot!</p>
<p>Would a company view me negatively if I were to pursue a second bachelors in Accounting, rather than a Masters? It might be more favorable for me because I could complete it for cheaper.</p>
<p>Pokey, frankly you can do either one. I personally believe that you would be better off with a masters in accounging though because you might get a slightly better off and it takes less time to complete.</p>
<p>Ok thank you taxguy. I was also thinking if I were to do another Bachelors I could also do things like join Beta Alpha Psi and really beef up my resume. The grad programs I’m applying to either don’t have a Beta Alpha Psi chapter, or they don’t let you join as a Graduate student.</p>
<p>Pokey, the only benefit that I got for being in Beta Alpha Psi was that I was referred students who needed tutoring in accounting that I was paid for. Other than that, I have NEVER, EVER been asked if I were a member of Beta Alpha Psi. </p>
<p>Thus, staying longer in college in order to become a member isn’t worth it. Likewise, factoring in Beta Alpha Psi membership for evaluating graduate programs is also not worth it. Finally, grad programs don’t care about Beta Alpha Psi members.</p>
<p>I do know that the business schools of the world would like you to think that membership in Beta Alpha Psi is the business equivalent of Phi Beta Kappa. In my opinion, this isn’t true.</p>
<p>I don’t know if it is entirely true that it doesn’t matter what school you went as far as Big 4 job offers are concerned. Big 4 will certainly prefer someone from USC or UCLA or some expensive private university to a student from a state school. I know that for a fact since I have seen a disproportionate number of those who graduated from the top schools in Big 4.</p>
<p>
I’ve noticed the same thing in N. Calif. But the dominant campus is from local other than USC althought it’s highly ranked.</p>
<p>carolco,</p>
<p>if you are talking about LA offices, it doesn’t mean much because usc/ucla graduate a lot more accounting majors than any other schools. other schools in so cal are either a lot smaller or don’t offer accounting programs. most top schools actually don’t have accounting programs. but the big4 do recruit students for top schools for their consulting practices.</p>
<p>What is a high gpa for accounting grads? At IU Bloomington the graduation gpa for accounting graduates is about 3.3, and probably considerably lower in accounting courses alone, probably no better than 3.0. Yet they are always ranked in the top ten in the Public Accounting Report survey, and are heavily recruited by big four and other companies. Surely the program’s high ranking is offsetting the low gpa’s relative to the gpa of accounting grads at the gazillion podunk U’s that offer the accounting major.</p>
<p>There are several state universities (CSU system) in Southern California that have accounting programs with boatloads of students, yet Big 4 still would rather have someone from USC or UCLA. They even go as far as Utah, BYU to find new people and it’s due to the high ranking of BYU. They do care about your school’s ranking</p>
<p>bthomp1 - your GPA is still a major factor. Yes, you might get a better look due to the fact that you are at a highly ranked program, but your GPA still needs to be up there in order to get internviews. As for other “podunk U’s” offering accounting programs, the thing about accounting is that the CPA exam is uniform, thus, the school does not matter so much, however, going to a ranked school will offer more opportunities through campus recruiting.</p>