Major decision: Big 4 TAS vs Pharma FMP [Europe]
Currently I am finishing my Master's (Accounting & Finance) in EU/Germany. Soon I'll have to start looking for a job after graduation and I see two possible paths where I'm not sure which one is more promising. I searched on this side for more info but I didnt find info that directly fit my question (but I did find some info on audit vs GE FMP in the US at least)
Option 1:
Big 4 TAS
[I interned in audit and later in TAS at Big 4 companies and as long as I dont have to deal with fk controls I'm okay with the work (I do like excel. Also I know that it might not be the case in the US but in Germany TAS does hire directly after uni)]
-> in 2-5 years: Switch to Industry, probably FP&A preferable in pharma/biotech (or chemicals, fmcg, automotive). I would love M&A/CDev but thats probably more of long shot.
Pro: Big 4 brand, Experience in different industries, more variety of tasks (maybe?), More diverse opportunies later on*
Con: TAS might be a bit of a niche, Money and work hours, not sure how easy it is to find a good exit opportunity, might not have the opportunity to work in the industry I'm interested in (mostly pharma)
Option 2:
Finance graduate/trainee programm (FMP) at a major pharma company (Bayer, Novartis, Roche etc)
[I interned in Corporate FP&A for subsidiaries and liked the tasks well enough, also I'm excited about the industry and dont mind the money (best paying industry on avg for finance behind automotive).]
-> 2 or 3 years with several rotations then most likely some FP&A job at the company (probably similar to the US, they usually dont let go of people after graduate programms bc they are pretty expensive to run for them)
-> No obvious reason to switch jobs but I assume I'd be able to switch between major pharma companies
Pro: Already inside goal industry, Pay, Work hours, reasonable brandname, rotation abroad during the programm
Con: Worse locations, probably less variety in the first years after the graduate programm, probably even harder to get into corp. M&A/CD (But they do have some people working in corp M&A after the graduate program so it is not impossible), probably harder to go into an other industry
That being said, some more thoughts:
- Money is not really an issue when starting out. Since we dont have tuition fees I was able to even save money as a student from part time jobs so I really dont care if I earn 45-50T€ (big 4) or 55-65T€ (pharma) during my first years. I'm interessted in my long term earning potential thought
- Working hours in the next couple of years I dont really care about to much, I'm not in a relationship and both options dont really fit for that (graduate programm would involve less hours but several moves to different cities including one placament abroad)
- While I am excited about pharma/biotech it probably would not be the end of the world if I ended up working in a different manufactoring sector (chemical, automotive etc)
- I dont really care about PE/IB positions which is I think a motivation for some people to join TAS
- We have something similar to the CPA but it usually takes longer (most people pass it arround after 4-5 years at the Big 4 and thats usually when you get promoted to Manager in audit. In TAS the people usually take the exams as well but often even a bit later BC it is not needed to get the manager level. Some people (less in FDD, more in Val) go for the CFA instead) and is not necessary for jobs outside the big 4
- Big 4 would allow me to build a bigger and more diverse network whereas if i start at the pharma company I will meet few people from other companies and especially at the european companies there is not that much job switching
-* TAS would probably allow me to go into some fields that I even cant think of right now, in less well known areas (what might that be?)
I have discussed this topic with several people from both industries and with some friends but still wasnt really able to make a decision. I was hoping that maybe someone from this forum might have some valuable insights.
Thanks!
