Everything you wanted to know or should know about accounting

<p>by the way, at this firm it seems like they may be making some sort of competition for a full-time position perhaps. there are 2 other interns coming in as well i believe and the partner liked that i mentioned how competitive i was and he also said he liked how i grew in ranks previously and the success i had with that job. maybe they want some motivation/innovation in the office</p>

<p>thetaxdad, based on what you are saying about larger firms, that doesn’t sound like anything anyone would want to do anyway - (getting specialized into a small particular area that is). sounds like a big turnoff, i like the entrepreneurial aspect of the smaller firm.</p>

<p>thanks for all the input</p>

<p>how do new hires become cpa? say for example I graduate w/ an accounting degree and go to the big 4 with 130 cr., would I have to quit after a year to get enough credits for cpa or what?</p>

<p>solidsnake, you have several undesirable choices:</p>

<ol>
<li>Most frequent: take the remaining credits after you work after tax season is over. This is a BIG hassle but is done my many. This is a real hassle and would require a lot of drive since you will have no life till this is completed</li>
</ol>

<p>2.Quit or at least temporarily resign and get the remaining credits.</p>

<p>Frankly, both suggestions aren’t good. You will be dog tired when you finish a work day. Having to take more courses afterwards, not to mention studying for the exam, is a MAJOR chore. You are much better off getting your 150 credits before you start working.</p>

<p>So i have decided to go into accounting and do my masters and get my cpa hopefully by dec 2011. I have a bit above a 3.5 gpa but have not taken any of the upper level acct courses yet (start this coming semester). But I want apply for internship but I am discouraged as I did something stupid in my past resulting in a theft on my criminal record (did not even steal) and am trying to get it off asap. </p>

<p>Now my question is, do firms typically do a background check on interns? A few of my sources have said that they do not do background checks until they have hired you, but you can apply for internships without fear of being rejected. Any information would be appreciated.</p>

<p>i see, I know that I would need the cpa to do certain jobs at the big4 but which kind of jobs at the big4 don’t require the cpa?</p>

<p>Thanks for sharing. It helps me to know more about the Accounting.</p>

<p>Non CPA jobs would be economists(going to need a Masters at least I’d think for that), actuaries, and computer type jobs(MIS). Plus there’s lots of lawyers in tax. Go to their websites and look.</p>

<p>im talking about at the big4 cuz not everyone there has a cpa</p>

<p>Uhh so was I. The Big Four employ economists, actuaries, computer types(CS, MIS, etc), and lawyers. If you go to the Big Four websites and look at their careers sections they say exactly what they hire.</p>

<p>accounting majors would become that??</p>

<p>No…people majoring in econ, MIS, etc would…</p>

<p>Thanks for the useful post…
what is investment banking btw?</p>

<p>You said that what school doesn’t matter for accounting as long as it’s accredited?.. what if the professors at high-ranked college are better than those at other colleges… Does it make a difference?
This is what I’ve been thinking and I’m not very sure…
Thanks again…</p>

<p>Your 2nd to 3rd tier state schools (not the 2 year or tech schools)should be all you need if you’re going into accounting. No need in blowing tons of cash on a brand name when every place is the same.</p>

<p>“No need in blowing tons of cash on a brand name when every place is the same.”</p>

<p>unless you want to get paid a little more, recruited by better firms/bigger companies, or work in a bigger city that does not normally hire graduates from your 2nd to 3rd tier state school.</p>

<p>Better firms or bigger companies such as? The Big 4 are as big as they get and I’m pretty sure they recruit more from say a UGA vs. an Emory. After your 1st few jobs, your degree doesn’t matter anymore, but if you wanted a fancy brand name degree, you’ll still have tens of thousands in debt.</p>

<p>see, even though big 4 firms have offices almost everywhere, the demand from grads varies when it comes to specific locations (not all big 4 offices are the same!). if you want to start your career where you’re from, it makes sense to just do well at your average state school. </p>

<p>however, if you want to tap into a major market (ie: new york/chicago), it helps to go to a school in that area. usually, going to a higher ranked school helps with the odds of getting the job. it’s all about connections.</p>

<p>Remember though that going some place better won’t make you a better student. The Big Four all recruit where I go and it’s not really that great. They let lots of idiots in and the result is I get straight A’s and still play a lot of video games. I’d rather go some place a bit better but I have reasons for being here. If you go to a 2nd tier school and you are good enough to go elsewhere chances are you can really excel and stand out there. Big fish in a small pond and all that…</p>

<p>Goto the best school possible.</p>

<p>Goto the best school possible FOR YOU (financially, location-wise, etc.).</p>

<p>That is setting yourself up to be mediocre in life. The tuition is chump change when you start making 150k+ a year.</p>