[salvatore]

Hello Guys!

I recently quit my job at a public accounting firm without any job lined up and moved back home with my parents. I’ve been unemployed for about a month and I just got a job offer from a mid tier public accounting firm. The pay is lower than what I wanted. I’m having difficulty making a decision because I want to transition into industry, but would like a job as soon as possible so I can leisurely spend money. However, I don’t really need a job right now because I don’t have any immediate financial obligations. I’m living with my parents so the only thing I have to pay every month is my student loan. I am wondering if I should accept the public accounting job offer for now and still interview for private jobs. But is it shady of me to accept the job and quit soon after if I do get another job? Also, if I do accept the job, would I have time for interviews? I don’t know since I’ve never had a job while looking for another job. Aren’t most interviews during working hours? I’m also thinking of accepting the job offer since I don’t know how long or if I will get a private accounting job anytime soon. And I will have experience in the tech industry since most of their clients are tech.

Also a bit of background about me: Residing in the bay area, BS in Accounting, a little over 2 years in public accounting, and eligible to sit for the CPA, but do not have my CPA yet,

All in all, I would love your guys opinion on whether or not I should take the job? Or wait for a private accounting job?

[Recked]

1, don't quit your job before you have a new job.
2, the only thing you have to pay now is student loans might be technically true, but you are relying on your parents to continue to subsidize your quality of life. ain't nothing free in this life son. get a damn job and pay your own. chip in for electricity and food at the very least. that roof over your head isn't free.
3, take the job offer. you aren't planning to make it a long term thing so if you need time off for an interview just bang out, or even more brazen, take a personal day and tell them its for a job interview. if a public accounting firm is taking you on in the midst of tax season there is equal chance they are using you as much as you are using them for the short term. if you are a hard worker and fit the crew/team, they MIGHT keep you after tax season, but chances are they are going to try and grind you for whatever they can earn off of you, and then give you the boost post tax season to cut costs.

is it shady to take the job if you plan to quit? yea probably, but like i said above, never assume an employer is looking out for your best interests, or are concerned with your long term well being. lots of employers are far more shady than you.

Remember if you intend to get your CPA, and go industry, you will still need a CPA to sign off on your experience. You may or may not have a supervisor that is a CPA in industry. Be careful what reputation you leave in your wake and what bridges you burn if you potentially need a past employer to sign off for you.

[ultrarunner]

I don't know what kind of the tech industry you are interested in. In the bay area, the top high tech companies (e.g. Google) require CPA as a minimum. Also, they recruit many from their big 4 or public accounting partner firms. Or you could target for the small or mid-sized high-tech companies or startups. Your 2-year public accounting experience is a good start, but it is definitely not enough. I'd recommend you to start studying for the CPA exams while you are looking for a new job. Sooner is better. Good luck.

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[fuzyfro89]

But is it shady of me to accept the job and quit soon after if I do get another job?

You have to do what's best for you. Sometimes, you do that intentionally and plan to leave in short order… other times it's just chance. If you get a huge raise or promotion at a new company but have only been in your current job for a few months… congratulations! Working somewhere has to be mutually beneficial.
With that said, right or wrong, repeatedly leaving jobs with short tenures may come across as flaky, but it corrects itself over time (you'll get less interviews or offers until you are seen as less flaky).

Also, if I do accept the job, would I have time for interviews? I don't know since I've never had a job while looking for another job. Aren't most interviews during working hours?

Yes, that's what vacation or coming late/leaving early is for. If your employer is so inflexible that you can only take vacation to interview, then that's unfortunate in that you will have to pick and choose which places you want to interview and narrow it down.

All in all, I would love your guys opinion on whether or not I should take the job? Or wait for a private accounting job?

Assuming you are early in your career, I think your resume can handle one short stint and you can explain leaving a public firm for another public firm (got burned out, wanted to try a new industry/firm to see if there's a better fit), and if you get the industry role you want, then you should be okay to explain that as finding out public just was not the right fit for you and you found something better outside.

What was your plan when you quit? You mention you left to find better pay, but didn't think through the trade off of how long you may have to search to find that. Generally, it's better to job search while employed. There's less demand for senior accountants (and management) without a CPA, so that should be your next step regardless of which job you choose in order to really grow demand and earnings power over time especially if you intend to stay in an accounting/audit focused role in public accounting or industry.

[sangtvo]

Don't take the job. Wait until you get a private accounting job.

I am also residing in the Bay Area and I recently accepted my offer at a tech start up in the Silicon Valley (start date in a month). It took me almost 5 months to find a new job after I left public accounting. I had no job lined up either. However, for one month I traveled around Europe before I started looking. I have 1 year of tax (mid-size public firm) and 1 year of corporate tax if that helps. Perhaps you did audit, so you have higher chances than I did! Most tech companies prefer someone that did audit anyway, especially B4. After traveling for one month, I pretty much studied for the CPA while applying 4-5 jobs every week.

So it really depends what you want to do. I had a little fun first before settling down on the CPA while looking for jobs. I say, you should start the CPA if you plan to, otherwise, just apply for industry jobs and enjoy your time while you wait. You might have better luck than I do.

[Go.For.Broke]

@salvatore

If you left public accounting to move into industry, do not take another public accounting job. Keep interviewing for industry.

If you need money to float you, grab an evening or nightshift job, like delivering pizzas or stocking shelves. That will allow you time during the day to interview, AND it wouldn't be much of a struggle to quit, once you accept a daytime job offer. I don't like the thought of accepting a job in public (where you don't want to be – so you probably wouldn't put your best foot forward), only to quit in as little as a couple of weeks, should you receive and accept a job offer in industry.

In my humble opinion, it is better to have a 2 month gap in employment on your resume than 2 months employed somewhere before quitting for no other reason than “well, this was just a placeholder until I found something better.”

Since you don't have any major financial obligations and are living with your parents, stick it out. Keep interviewing. If finances get tight, grab an afternoon/evening/nightshift job to provide some income for the short term.

That's what I would do.

Good luck!

[hhjogger]

Re:
Remember if you intend to get your CPA, and go industry, you will still need a CPA to sign off on your experience. You may or may not have a supervisor that is a CPA in industry. Be careful what reputation you leave in your wake and what bridges you burn if you potentially need a past employer to sign off for you.

I am a CA CPA. In CA, even if you burn your bridges they can be subject to disciplinary action if they do not have a good reason to sign off on your hours. You can have your hours you worked signed off for immediately, in fact, I would recommend you do! If you had attest, submit those hours to the board, too.

FYI If I could, I would have stayed in public longer, I just ended up in industry quickly. But maybe the grass is always greener… However when you work less hours, it is easy to study for the CPA. Plus some staff accountant positions are non-exempt. 🙂

Passed all 4 parts of the CPA exam.

[jbergmann1]

@hhjogger non-exempt? What is That? Some kind of clerk-based position or they really don't value you and won't work you over 40 so it's moot.

Passed all 4 parts of the CPA exam!
License application in progress

[hhjogger]

@jbergmann1
My first private job was non exempt and they gave me so much overtime. My boss encouraged me to work it too. They also promoted me after a year.

Passed all 4 parts of the CPA exam.

[Author]

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