[Anonymous]

Hello,

I’m trying to get an auditor job and haven’t been successful. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

I recently completed all 4 parts of the CPA exam. I have been working as an office manager/full charge bookkeeper for 2.5 years. Before that, I worked as an accounting clerk for a small CPA office. Basically, my background involves extensive bookkeeping experience and not so much of accounting and not at all of auditing. I graduated 2.5 years ago with BA in Business Administration. My GPA was 2.8. I know it’s very low :(.

I want to become an auditor and also want to know what it feels like to work in the Big Four. My questions are:

1. How do I get entry level audit experience with Big Four without an internship?

2. How do I get entry level audit experience with smaller CPA firms without an internship?

3. If internship is the only way and if I pursue a Master of Taxation, what is the chance of me getting an audit internship? The universities close by do not have a Master of Accountancy program. The one that does is quite far away and the program is full time, which means I have to quit my full time job and find a part time job. I’m finding other alternatives before going that route.

Thank you for reading this!

[mena je twa]

CPATBC-

The only way you can land a job as a auditor in big 4 or even the Big 8 or small local midsize public accounting firm is through social connection.

Right now with your experince, and if i was a hiring manager, i would not look at your resume, if i have other options in front of me, where people have proper accounting experince from fortune 500 companies or have worked as a auditor before.

I was like you, a year ago i passed my cpa, had accounting experience with publicly listed company, but nobody looked at me when i applied for public accounting firms.

the moment someone refered me from within, they interviewed me, i did really good on the i nterviews, and thats how i landed a job. It took me 9 months , but i never gave up. people around me told me that i am too old and dont have prior public experince, but i was pushy and kept at it.

knowing somebody in the firm is your best bet. Doing masters in Acctg and then hoping for something and internship is all wishful thinking….It might work, but chances are slim to none, in my opinion.

Licensed CPA, Texas - 2012

[kmaahs]

You're in a tricky spot… I certainly wouldn't go for an MST if you want to audit, that doesn't make much sense. It is also a dangerous move to quit your FT job in lieu of education that *might* give you a leg up. Since you don't currently need credits (you have the test done) the only reason I could see you going further is for networking purposes, which may or may not pan out…

Do public firms recruit at your undergrad school? Have you gone to the recruiting events before? Meeting recruiters face to face is by and far the best way to get an interview. Your GPA is meh, but having the test passed and some accounting experience (though not auditing) would make you a strong candidate. I wouldn't hold my breath for Big 4, but I don't see why a regional firm wouldn't possibly give you a shot if you can wow one of their recruiters.

That would be my goto if I were you, try to get involved with your undergrads campus recruiting this season…

C.P.A.

[Newbe654]

@mena je twa

How did you do good in the interview? Any advice would be much appreciated 😉 have one next week…

[mena je twa]

Well,

I wanted to try public accounting , so i literally sold my self to the 2 partners that i interviewed.

I kind of started with why i am better then the rest of the candidates. ( Talk here about your strong points, go in a tad bit of detail, but do not, do not bore the listener, keep him lively and entertained).

Talk a little about about your negatives, now dont go all guns blazing but say like i wished i had gotten this opportunity earlier in my career or something on those lines, cause partners know, nobody is perfect. They like to now something bad about you.

be atleast 15 minutes early, tell the receptionist, even though you are early, can you let them know that i am here, make sure they call them, make them do that…

Also, i dont know if you are a CPA yet, but i talked with the partners and made them realize, why CPA was so important for me and for my career and now why public accoutning would be the right fit for me, ( now do the bullshit here), but be careful. Partner will pick up on your BS…just make it look decent.

Lastly, consider this interview as a chat with your best buddy at a bar over a beer….Do not stress out, half the battle will be lost if you go in there stressed…Keep telling yourself that you are better then the other jackasses who will interview before or after me…..

In the end just sell your self, but luck will also play a part in it, always has for me and always will…. Without luck the world doesn't exist, my friend…Goodluck

Licensed CPA, Texas - 2012

[Newbe654]

@mena je twa

Thank you for the reply will definitely have to keep that in mind for next week. Good luck with your search as well CPATBC.

[Anonymous]

Thank you for your reply, everyone!

I know it's a tough battle to fight. But I'm not gonna give up.

I know networking is everything nowadays. I'm curious as to why most of you think that Masters is not worth the shot and won't result in opportunities. It's like, in your undergrad, you built your experience through internship and went from there. I recently heard of some people that I knew from volunteering in VITA getting in good companies through their undergrad internship. That's why I thought that internships would be my best shot right now.

I have also checked out random people's profiles on LinkedIn :), and found that once they started internship with a good company, doors opened up from there. Before that, they worked random, unrelated jobs.

So please let me know why you think Masters is not a good thing. Have you done that and found that it didn't work? I just need more insights to make the right decision.

Thanks!

[Author]

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