Internship help: F50 Corp Fin or Big 4 Audit?
I'm a third year, I want to work in finance in the tech industry when I graduate, and I'm not interested in a career in accounting. For the summer I have an offer for Big 4 Audit and an offer for F50 Corp Fin.
If I want to work in finance it seems logical to go for the F50 position but I've received a lot of feedback that big 4 would be a great brand name on my resume(Big 4 as opposed to Kraft, Caterpillar, Intel, Best Buy). My concern was that the difference in the name won't compensate for the fact that acc and fin are two different fields and it might create more hurdles for me when I recruit for fulltime.
Basically, my question is which offer would allow me to put my best foot forward for full time recruiting?
I'd love to hear any opinions anyone might have!
Best wishes. Good luck to you
Best wishes. Good luck to you . Merry Christmas.
I'm in Big 4 and I cannot
I'm in Big 4 and I cannot speak for what the Corp Fin gig will do for you, but you're correct, doing Big 4 audit will be considered a logical step to a career in accounting. Transitioning from accounting to finance is always possible, but it's not a given.
Stepping back for a moment, is the Corp Fin offer in accounting as well? If so, go with the Big 4.
Now hopefully some of the folks who've made the transition can chime in, although there is some good info in here if you search around a little. Good luck!
If you're interested in
If you're interested in finance in tech, then it would probably help your story more that you interned at a F50 tech company in a somewhat finance related role. At least, you can work with that to get your story straight.
I would go with the F50.
(i'm just a student.)
I think either would be good,
I think either would be good, but usually from accounting you make the transition after 2-3 years. You don't usually make it after an internship. Though I've seen plenty of people who had an internship in accounting and also some other finance internships and ended up in finance. So it can be useful too, as long as it's not the only internship you do. If it's the only one, you should take the F50 corp fin.
Great posts! This will be my
Great posts! This will be my first and only summer internship so it was important for me to ask around as much as I can so I really appreciate the help. @Scott Irish and yes the F50 will be finance not an accounting role.
i work in big4 audit and i
i work in big4 audit and i gotta tell you, transitioning to non-accounting Corp Fin roles isnt that easy. all these recruiters that are spamming my inbox and voicemail have nothing but internal audit/fund accounting/financial reporting positions to offer. id say take the Corp Fin gig even if its somewhat more on the accounting side because you can always try to get the FT offer within a more finance-oriented role within the company whereas with big4 audit, its pretty difficult to turn an audit internship into a FT offer in their Transaction Services or Consulting groups. just my two cents. PM me if you have any more questions abt audit.
Go CorpFin
Go CorpFin
"Those who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."- Benjamin Franklin
Wanted to keep you guys in
Wanted to keep you guys in the loop. I went for the F50 fin offer. My school has heavy big 4 presence and I'm glad I asked for opinions on the outside. Thank you for all your help!
Congrats man.
Congrats man.
I had to make the same
I had to make the same decision about a month ago between a Fortune 50 (P&G, J&J, GE etc) and a Big 4 audit internship. While the F50 was not for finance (it was accounting), I ended up choosing the big 4 for a couple of reasons. Just my opinion, but it seemed to me that: Big 4 name recognition was higher, the room for promotion is greater and the timing of promotions is quicker. Also, I was originally looking to get into finance prior to accounting and when I would apply for positions, I noticed a ton of jobs which "prefer" or "require" Big 4 experience. You could guess I ended up choosing the Big 4 gig, either way congrats on accepting the offer. What state/city will you be working in?
Higheck123: Just my opinion,
Just my opinion, but it seemed to me that: Big 4 name recognition was higher, the room for promotion is greater and the timing of promotions is quicker. Also, I was originally looking to get into finance prior to accounting and when I would apply for positions, I noticed a ton of jobs which "prefer" or "require" Big 4 experience.
Thanks highcheck, can you talk a bit more about the second part I quoted? Did they tell you this or was this something that you realized along the way? They might like to see this exp prior to getting the finance position, but in my case I was already given the offer. Would it be safe to say that this internship is still superior to the big4 offer(for someone going for corp fin)?
Also, I would like to hear more from everyone if big4 really does that have name recognition or prestige over a F50 company. What are the general thoughts on that?
As for the first part I wrote
As for the first part I wrote about promotions and name recognition, the promotion structure at the big 4 are all structured so that as long as you meet certain expectations you progress up the ladder(associate,senior associate,manager etc) within a pretty set time frame. Name recognition of the big 4 was so apparent every where I turned, even in my interview with the f50. They specifically told me that they prefer to hire experienced people with big 4 experience because of the training they receive. Also, after a few years at a big 4 you can enter a position that would take nearly double the time to achieve as an internal candidate.
Higheck123: As for the first
As for the first part I wrote about promotions and name recognition, the promotion structure at the big 4 are all structured so that as long as you meet certain expectations you progress up the ladder(associate,senior associate,manager etc) within a pretty set time frame. Name recognition of the big 4 was so apparent every where I turned, even in my interview with the f50. They specifically told me that they prefer to hire experienced people with big 4 experience because of the training they receive. Also, after a few years at a big 4 you can enter a position that would take nearly double the time to achieve as an internal candidate.
as a current big4 slave who is looking to leave, i can tell you that the last part of your post is def incorrect. after meeting with recruiters and searching for jobs myself online, i found that my 2 years of big4 experience was still only going to count as 2 years of experience at all of the companies i looked at. this includes all sorts of positions from financial reporting, accounting policy, product control etc.
also, it is difficult to transition from big4 audit to more of a pure finance role at a F500. sure, they love big4 experience, but usually for their financial reporting/internal audit positions. their FP&A groups will occasionally take ppl with big4 audit exp, but that is not the norm. most openings for experienced positions within FP&A are looking for ppl with prior FP&A experience. you can def still get in with big4 audit experience, but a lot will depend on how you spin your experience in audit.
I think it really depends on
I think it really depends on the sort of rotations you expect to land during the FLDP - which, the internship is usually a feeder to.
Big4 experience could be much more valuable, if most of what you do during the FLDP is accounting. If it's more finance related stuff, then the F50 will probably offer better opportunities for advancement.
Would this be a wrong way to look at it?
i hate
As for the first part I wrote about promotions and name recognition, the promotion structure at the big 4 are all structured so that as long as you meet certain expectations you progress up the ladder(associate,senior associate,manager etc) within a pretty set time frame. Name recognition of the big 4 was so apparent every where I turned, even in my interview with the f50. They specifically told me that they prefer to hire experienced people with big 4 experience because of the training they receive. Also, after a few years at a big 4 you can enter a position that would take nearly double the time to achieve as an internal candidate.
as a current big4 slave who is looking to leave, i can tell you that the last part of your post is def incorrect. after meeting with recruiters and searching for jobs myself online, i found that my 2 years of big4 experience was still only going to count as 2 years of experience at all of the companies i looked at. this includes all sorts of positions from financial reporting, accounting policy, product control etc.
also, it is difficult to transition from big4 audit to more of a pure finance role at a F500. sure, they love big4 experience, but usually for their financial reporting/internal audit positions. their FP&A groups will occasionally take ppl with big4 audit exp, but that is not the norm. most openings for experienced positions within FP&A are looking for ppl with prior FP&A experience. you can def still get in with big4 audit experience, but a lot will depend on how you spin your experience in audit.
Appreciate your feedback. I probably should have added, and correct me if I am wrong, but the optimal time to leave a big 4 gig for a more finance geared role is 2-3 years. I was told by my cousin who is a senior manager that this will allow you to get a enough experience to speak confidently about in an interview and show you stayed long enough to learn that you want to transition into finance without pigeonholing yourself into strictly accounting roles.
Also, out of curiosity, which service group do you work in (fin. services, healthcare, etc)? I am trying to find out more about the financial services audit groups and how they differ from other groups. Thanks.
big 4 audit is the most dull
big 4 audit is the most dull
i hate
Higheck123: i hate
IHA, were those interviews
season11: IHA, were those
i hate
IHA mind walking us through
season11: i hate
If this makes any Big 4
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"The surest way not to fail is to determine to succeed."
TheBlueCheese: If you have
Higheck123: TheBlueCheese:
Febreeze: IHA mind walking us