[lancebvs]

So what would you guys say are differences in terms of exit opportunities in public accounting (audit vs tax)?

I realize that audit typically the exit opportunities are controller, senior accountant position, cfo, etc. And tax is probably to open up private practice. But I would like to see what everyone else here things about this subject.

Specifically, exit opportunities of a top 6 firm?

[fuzyfro89]

I think you can search around this forum and find a similar question asked in a variety of ways, but I'll give it a stab.

Tax – Mainly useful if you actually like tax and see yourself in a career in the field. Exit opportunities from doing tax in public accounting are doing tax at a smaller firm, opening up your own firm, doing tax planning, tax consulting, wealth management, estate/wealth management, corporate tax, and the like. Basically, anything in the field of tax.

Audit – Much, much broader. Doesn't really prepare you for anything specifically, which can be good or bad depending on your goals. If anything, it prepares you well for a role in financial reporting (accounting, SEC reporting, internal audit, etc). Mainly useful if you don't see yourself with a career in tax (any field). Common exits from doing audit at Big 4/GT/Mcg/BDO are working in a corporate accounting or internal audit role. Less common exits are corporate finance and consulting (many different types). This is typically a better option if you see yourself 1) Not in tax, 2) in financial reporting somewhere or in corporate finance.

These are the “typical” opportunities that beginning a career in a top public acct firm will help you obtain… my opinion anyway. Hope this covers what you were looking for.

[Study Monk]

The general consensus is that auditing has way more exit opportunities. You can look on craiglist.com and compare the number of general accounting jobs with the number of tax jobs to get an idea. Tax accounting jobs in Industry tend to pay a little more, but are way harder to find. The cool thing about tax accounting is that you are learning a skill you can do from home and you can eventually have your own business.

I am planning to start a career in tax, and like fuzyfro mentioned, my backup plan if I get bored with tax accounting will be to get my CFP license and become a certified financial planner. When I pick my specialization in tax I will be choosing trusts and high net worth individuals.

I spoke to an ancient wise man who sent me on a mushroom induced journey through an ancient forest to find the key to passing the CPA exam. A talking spider monkey told me to throw the last of my drinking water in the dirt to find what I was looking for. So I followed his instructions and the following message appeared in the soil:

"Do 5000 multiple choice questions for each section"

[nicole2035]

cfo, controller, and senior accountant all in the same line? one is not like the other. more than likely senior accountant, majority of the time. then from there you may get a manager position of internal audit at a company but it depends on what area you've got a lot of skill in. they don't just promote anyone to CFO or controller especially if you haven't been in the specific private industry for long

[Mayo]

” they don't just promote anyone to CFO or controller especially if you haven't been in the specific private industry for long “

I've seen Sr. Manager in audit to CFO a couple of times. But those were back in the SOX hey-day. In terms of Assistant Controller or Controller, it just depends on the size of the company and nature of the position.

I've seen someone go from being a second year auditor in Big 4 to Assistant Controller in a small PE firm. I've also seen a 5 year Audit Senior go to a Controller position in a small PE firm. Again, it depends on your specific type of experience and ability to network…but I digress.

Tax – Tax positions in industry or public; Tax lawyer (not sure of the ROI on this though..); transfer Pricing?? Dunno crap about Tax. :/

you can always go with Professor for either Tax or audit.

Audit –

Typical General Ledger accounting; Think Senior acct, Assist Controller, Controller, CFO, etc; These can vary on role within the company. Some can be very interesting; Think Risk/Hedge Accounting as an example.

External Financial reporting – Help draft financial statements and provide feedback to Controllers when something looks off. Busy time during period close, but so is everyone else.

Technical accounting; These guys research complex, new, or obscure accounting standards and give recommendations on how they should be applied company-wide. These can also include SEC/SOX compliance type of jobs depending on the industry. Usually they are heavily regulated.

FP&A – Corp Finance; Can mean budgeting, ad hoc reports, cost acct, Due diligence on M&A, M&A strategy (usually small companies and at higher levels; But seen someone fill that role straight from audit), etc.

Internal audit – Mix of Internal control/SOX stuff, Operational audits, and ad-hoc special projects (think employee accusing management of fraud; BOD wants XYZ department investigated, etc.). Many IA departments have rotational programs to later go into accounting or finance positions. Many IA depts are also career dead ends, so tread carefully.

Partner – I've seen the jump from Big 4 to smaller public company in need of new partners. However, I've heard good and bad things about this.

Other Service Lines – Forensic Accounting, Due Diligence, Valuation, Financial accounting Advisory, etc. Uses a lot of skills learned in audit, but without some of the stuff that make audit suck. However, they do come with their own caveats to be aware of.

Good to Great MBA – I've seen people leave after their 4 or 5th busy season. Usually, the types not only have Big 4 experience, but also are great networkers and have tons of extracurriculars. Oh, and they all crushed the GMAT. From there they've gone to Risk Management ( think FRM/CFA), some to Investment Banking, etc.

Investment Banking – Pure networking; but it can be done if you want it enough and have the network.

Professor – Again, just like tax.

That's off the top of my head. But just go on linkedin and do a search for “XYZ Public Accounting firm”, and you'll see a variety of careers paths that you didn't know about.

Mayo, BBA, Macc

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