[Emily]

Hi all,

I’ve been struggling with what the best next move is for my career and I’m hoping that some of you may be able to provide some insight on this. Appreciate the help!

So I graduated from one of the top 10 public universities with a GPA slightly above 3.0 (which is pretty low). Worked in private industry for about four years now and decided that I’m going into public. So I spent the last 8 months studying for the CPA exams and passed all, hoping to get my license# by the end of the month. I recently got an offer as an assurance associate for Fall’19 from one of the largest non-B4 firms in the Bay Area. However, my ultimate goal is to work at a B4 for at least a few years. Obviously, it’s already passed their recruiting season so I’m thinking that the best move is to take the offer and gain a couple years of auditing experience before switching to a B4. What are my chances of getting in as an experienced associate after some years of public accounting experience? Or should I keep looking for B4 openings?

I know threads like this are very common but I’m kind of lost at this moment. I’m 26 and people at my age are already being promoted to seniors and I barely just started. I know public is gonna be tough but this is what I want to do, so any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks everyone!

[MaLoTu]

I would say take the offer, definitely.

You will definitely be able to move to big 4 in a year or 2, if you choose. The only thing that would change that is if the economy slows and they stop hiring.

I was not at a big firm and big 4 recruiters were constantly reaching out to me.

You may like the firm you start with or you may hate public accounting. I would take it day by day. Congrats on the offer!

[Author]

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