[Anonymous]

Hi everyone,

In May 2014 when I have the 150 hrs to sit for the CPA exam, I’m considering moving to public accounting from industry. I thought about waiting until I have the entire CPA exam passed (hopefully by Summer 2015) before I tried to get into public, but just because you plan to have the CPA exam passed by a certain time, doesn’t mean it will happen. I know there are plenty of people in public that don’t have the CPA designation yet, but most people I know like that started in public out of college and just haven’t managed to pass it yet, while I started in industry. I will be 26 yrs old, so that’s not much older than most recent college graduates (usually 21-23 yrs old) that I will be up against. I always wanted to get into public right out of college, but things didn’t go as I expected. I will admit, it’s scary to try to get into public 4 years out of school, when a firm can always go with that fresh college graduate. Plus it doesn’t help that I have student loans and other various bills now that I didn’t have when I first graduated college in 2009. A part of me regrets taking a job in industry out of college when I know I wanted to go public all along.

I was just wondering if anyone has been in the same boat, and would did you do? Any advice?

[Anonymous]

My advice to you would be to sit down with Excel (we're accountants, so Excel > calculators 😉 ) and work out what you *have* to make. And then start looking for a position that will be in public and make that minimum dollar. And…I wouldn't wait till a magical date – I'd go ahead and start looking now. Worst that happen is everyone offers you 60% of what you require because you're not eligible for the exam, and if they do that, so what? You're in the same spot you are now – working in industry and getting your credits. Best case scenario someone offers you your dream job, and you take it.

But the fact of the matter is that after 4 years in industry, there's still a very good chance that you'll be offered just-graduated wages. Sometimes public accounting can be a bit haughty – “If it's not public, it's not experience” type mindset. So, you'll probably have to take a paycut, from a “4 years experience” pay rate to a “recent grad” pay rate. But if it's what you really want to be doing, then the paycut is worth it, presuming you can pay your bills. Just make sure that you go into any salary discussion knowing what your bottom-dollar is. Don't let yourself get in a situation where you can't pay your bills…but a situation where you're tight for a couple years is worth it to get where you want to be. 🙂

[Anonymous]

My advice to you would be to sit down with Excel (we're accountants, so Excel > calculators 😉 ) and work out what you *have* to make. And then start looking for a position that will be in public and make that minimum dollar. And…I wouldn't wait till a magical date – I'd go ahead and start looking now. Worst that happen is everyone offers you 60% of what you require because you're not eligible for the exam, and if they do that, so what? You're in the same spot you are now – working in industry and getting your credits. Best case scenario someone offers you your dream job, and you take it.

But the fact of the matter is that after 4 years in industry, there's still a very good chance that you'll be offered just-graduated wages. Sometimes public accounting can be a bit haughty – “If it's not public, it's not experience” type mindset. So, you'll probably have to take a paycut, from a “4 years experience” pay rate to a “recent grad” pay rate. But if it's what you really want to be doing, then the paycut is worth it, presuming you can pay your bills. Just make sure that you go into any salary discussion knowing what your bottom-dollar is. Don't let yourself get in a situation where you can't pay your bills…but a situation where you're tight for a couple years is worth it to get where you want to be. 🙂

[Anonymous]

Thanks for advice Lilla.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for advice Lilla.

[whopper]

I'm doing something similar except I left a government accounting position after 6 years. I decided to take the CPA exam before I reenter the workforce (passed 2 parts so far) and recently went to a career fair. It really caught the interviewer's attention when I mentioned I'm in the process of completing the exam. My challenge will be explaining a work gap but I think as long as you pass the exam within 6 mos (no more than 1 yr), you should be ok. All of the interviewers understood why I decided not to work until I passed the exam, it's like a fulltime job itself. As Lilla said above, just manage your bills, live frugal for a little while and you should be ok. Also, if you have an opportunity to volunteer doing taxes through VITA or AARP, this can be a nice resume booster and help you with the REG part of the CPA exam. Best wishes with your journey!

REG - 89, 04/29/13
BEC - 81, 08/06/13
FAR - 84, 12/19/13
AUD - 82, 10/05/13

[whopper]

I'm doing something similar except I left a government accounting position after 6 years. I decided to take the CPA exam before I reenter the workforce (passed 2 parts so far) and recently went to a career fair. It really caught the interviewer's attention when I mentioned I'm in the process of completing the exam. My challenge will be explaining a work gap but I think as long as you pass the exam within 6 mos (no more than 1 yr), you should be ok. All of the interviewers understood why I decided not to work until I passed the exam, it's like a fulltime job itself. As Lilla said above, just manage your bills, live frugal for a little while and you should be ok. Also, if you have an opportunity to volunteer doing taxes through VITA or AARP, this can be a nice resume booster and help you with the REG part of the CPA exam. Best wishes with your journey!

REG - 89, 04/29/13
BEC - 81, 08/06/13
FAR - 84, 12/19/13
AUD - 82, 10/05/13

[Author]

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