re: Accounting Majors -- Any experiences here?

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It might be difficult to intern somewhere across the country.

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I guess it can be. We've had interns in Dallas from California, Atlanta, Memphis, etc. Its one of those things I guess you'd really just need to play by ear depending on how strong a candidate you are.

Accountant here. Graduated in 2014, became CPA in 2016. Worked at regional CPA firm for a few years and now work for a State AG's office as a forensic accountant.

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Public vs Industry?

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Really your preference and what you want to do. I never wanted to go public, hated public while I was in it, and will never go back. All that being said, I absolutely believe it is the way to go if you are unsure of what you want to do.

I did it for 4 years, and you will gain more valuable experience in public that will keep more doors open for you while you figure out what you want to do. If you go industry, you may limit your options a bit more as far as your career path - which is fine if you specifically know what you want to do and the industry path works for that.

And the public accounting horror stories can vary. I know some who went Big 4 and worked 80+ hour weeks during busy season. I know others who went Big 4 and worked 50-60 hour busy seasons which are manageable. I was in the 50-60 hour range for busy season at our regional firm, and I think that's pretty standard for smaller firms. It all varies by location and firm, though. Just do your research when job hunting.

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How hard is the CPA exam?

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I found it challenging but manageable. I am a good test taker, which helps. But I was able to pass all 4 parts while working full time and studying of an evening. I slacked off on my last test and got a 74 the first time I took it, but the other 3 I passed the first time.

I used Becker's review course and from my experience it was a great package - put in the time with a good course like that and you will pass it.

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I guess it can be. We've had interns in Dallas from California, Atlanta, Memphis, etc. Its one of those things I guess you'd really just need to play by ear depending on how strong a candidate you are.

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Yeah it’s not like it’s abnormal, especially to intern in a bigger city, but this guy is working a warehouse job in Idaho so I figured there might be some difficulty getting back to the south or else he would have already done it.

But in Big 4 it is incredibly common to transfer offices once you are on board. OP it does not hurt to ask, especially if you are a strong candidate.

One more thing I think is good information for you. By interning at a Big 4 you are going to get incredible resources for the CPA. They pay for all of your Becker, including all the supplemental materials. They pay all application and testing fees, and give you a 5k bonus when you pass. Only caveat is you have to stay, i think, a year after you pass. In my opinion, its worth doing Big 4 a couple of years just for that.

I started big 4 with a guy who was 33, ex military, he had no issues. Just have to be willing to do the work and not be too proud to listen to a 24 year old tell you what to do. You can move up quickly so the weirdness goes away pretty fast.

Additionally, big 4 will hire people out of industry at the manager level (in tax at least) who will be a little older than the people who started straight out of college and have moved up. The age thing doesn’t matter once you’ve got your foot in the door.

For whatever reason we have a decent amount of people from BYU at my firm and they're all a little older. Not an issue at all. They're weird though

Like Mingo said, if you are a good candidate they recruit for all offices for internships, and the biggest offices want the most interns. So Houston and Dallas will take 30-50 while NOLA might have 3-5.

I will disagree with him about grades...you want to have great grades. Makes the whole process easier. There might not be a hard cutoff but they favor 3.5+ every day of the week. And that a something you can work on right now.

I didn’t intern, but I had a 4.0 in accounting classes so it made my life easier.

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My dad's friend's father was head of Tulane accounting and said to do UNO. It was much cheaper and their students pass the CPA more on the first try.

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I doubt this is true, or it's true because not many Tulane grads are taking the CPA exam in Louisiana and the raw numbers are higher for UNO.

Either way, I agree with the other poster that an expensive private university likely doesn't make much sense for a career in accounting. Tulane's value over the public schools in Louisiana shows way more on the finance side.

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So Houston and Dallas will take 30-50

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Its more like 150-200 across all service lines per year between spring and summer

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I will disagree with him about grades...you want to have great grades. Makes the whole process easier.

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I certainly agree with that. My point is if it says you need a 3.5 to apply, but you have a 3.3 go ahead and apply and bust your arse making a favorable person to person impression.

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They didn't pay for Becker

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That's csn be worth like 4k if you get all the supplemental stuff. Thats a big deal for a lot of people. I would have probably taken out an extra couple of grand of students loans to buy it had it not been free.