[Anonymous]

Hello everybody. I recently passed the CPA exam and I have been looking for a job in the Detroit area since the 1st of the year. I was wondering if anyone knew of any company or individual that is looking for a future CPA? I just need to fulfill the experience requirement and I will be certified by the State of Michigan. Briefly my qualifications include an MBA and Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from Wayne State University, completion of all four parts of the CPA exam on my first attempt, member of Beta Gamma Sigma, and accounting experience for a sole proprietorship. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

n

Also, I have tried all the typical routes like careerbuilder, monster, yahoo, michworks, craigslist, etc. I honestly don’t know what the problem is. I pretty much have applied to everything that is listed as an accounting job and I still don’t have a job! Some of the feedback that I have received includes maybe being overqualified. I’m not sure what to think. Any input or advice on anything would be nice. Thanks in advance everybody!n

n

[Anonymous]

I still would recommend doing local job fairs as well. Our state accountancy board holds job fairs twice per year. I went to one the summer before my senior year (where I got a job offers through university recruiting), and I made a few connections at local financial firms and mid-size regional CPA firms. I met with the recruiter (a manager) at a mid-size regional CPA firm, made a good impression, expressed my interested, gave him my resume, took his card, and they reached out to me during their recruiting season (which they strategically time prior to traditional university and big 4 recruiting, i.e. august as opposed to september/october). i learned as much about the guy as I could during the job fair, where he went to school, what he majored in, what industries he worked in, why he joined the firm, what he likes the most about the firm, etc. during the interview, i would recall these things that the recruiter told me, and i would say that I am looking for similar experience to each of the 5 interviewers. since the firm was smaller, everyone knew who this recruiter/manager was.

point is, you can make really strong connections via local accounting job fairs. sure, this was 4 years ago, but nothing has changed. jobs are fewer, but the firms still go to the job fairs looking for people. so these types of techniques and skills are more important than ever to stand out.

[PursuitCPA]

I have been posting every 2 days on cb, monster, and CL with my anonymous resume to avoid scammers, spammers, and recruiters. So far nothing but I am getting emails and this is only been 1 week.

Job fairs are ok but I would look in meetup groups, get out there and network.

Good Luck Hope we all get a job soon and fix this country.

CPA EXAM - Passed

[Anonymous]

Quoting bama_cpa_to_be:

czack, first let me say that you are about to get bombarded by a couple of negative posters that attack anyone and everyone that even mentions looking for a job. So, I want to get to you first.

Lol I know that the job search is hard for everyone bama_cpa_to _be. I just wanted to make sure that I was doing everything in my power that I could possibly be doing. I figured things were hard out there but I didn't imagine how big of a mess that it truly is. But like everyone has said we all have to stay positive and it will work out for the best. And let me say that I appreciate all the input from everybody. We just have to keep doing our part. If we can do that it will work out. Here's to staying positive. As the great Peter Olinto would say: we're on our way to a CPA baby!!!

[Anonymous]

The sad part is I can remember my first Principles of Accounting class in junior college. The instructor said, we make great money and we need all the accountants we can get. She said that her firm would hire many more accountants if they were out there. Now, her firm has not hired a new accountant in 4 years. They have cut waaaaaaay back. My what a difference a few years can make.

[NC_CPAwannabe]

@ keep_studying, honestly, I did not feel that I had anything to lose so I would just call CPAs and ask them to meet with me. All of them have been really nice and said yes! It seems to have worked better than asking if they were hiring. Also, when speaking with a CPA at one of the firms, she metioned that alot of firms hire in the fall because the summer time is so slow. Which makes since because of year ends and then tax season right after that. I hope that helps, if not feel free to comment again.

*formerly known as tiffanygharrington* FAR-7/10, AUD-8/10, BEC-10/10, REG-11/10

[keep_studying]

NC_CPAwannabe,

I really appreciate your input! Thanks for sharing your method.

Right. I sent out resumes to accounting firms and I figured out they are not hiring right now, for most of firms.

Good luck to you!

[Not Lynn Merely]

First, job hunting is painful. Congratulations to all on keeping your chins up!

I gave up on the internet job boards' online applications. They just didn't seem to work. When I was looking for any work that paid, I found I had the most luck with classified and Craigslist postings that had a real phone number to call (check it on a search engine first, to make sure it's not part of a scam).

I found a couple little minimum wage-type jobs. I honestly think that being employed at something helped when I started applying at CPA firms again.

I'd heard the hiring season starts in September, so on September first I mailed out resumes and cover letters to five or six firms in the area. Before you mail out anything, do your research! Find out everything you can about your target firms. This site <https://www.bizjournals.com/&gt; has city pages. Try to find articles about your target firms. Write each cover letter as an individual thing. Don't just use one for all the firms. If you know anyone who works at a good office job, ask them to proofread your letters. Then have someone else comb them for grammar and spelling errors. Do the same things for your resume.

You might also try local temp agencies. If they can get work for you, you might find it a good way to meet people and get your foot in the door somewhere.

Keep your interview suits pressed, and good luck!

BEC 11/14/09 - 89; REG 11/28/09 - 88;
FAR 05/28/10 - 95; AUD 07/09/10 - 93
NY soon-to-be CPA!

[Author]

Replies