Is going to a better school for MAcc worth it?
I'm a junior at Arizona State doing my degree in accounting and certificate in business data analytics. I have good leadership positions on campus, an accounting internship, and strong GPA. I have family connections in investment banks and feel that I want to do more than just audit at a big 4. If I did my MAcc at ASU, it'd be about $20k, whereas if I did the MAcc at UVA or Notre Dame, it'd be more like $50-$60k. I think it might be worth it for me to go to a more prestigious school if I ever want to move into the finance world. I know ASU doesn't have the best reputation on the east coast, even though the accounting program is respected out here. If I did the route of working big 4 for a few years > MBA > banking or something, then the school I did my master's degree at would impact where I can get my MBA, right? Or I could try to skip that part and recruit directly as an analyst if I went to UVA and still have big4 as my back up.
Thanks for your input
Only do the MACC if you need credits for the CPA.
Well, I need further education to hit the 150 credits and a MAcc would be my favorite way to do it.
I also go to Arizona State, PM me.
I would say go to UVA or Notre Dame if you can afford the transfer. Do the MAcc program and if you know you want to do finance recruit for a summer analyst job between year 4 and year 5. Just a thought.
I second the transfer / recruit for finance job before beginning MAcc.
It gives you a chance to get 150 and continue down the CPA path in case taking another shot at IB doesn't work out. It's the safe bet, but also the upside bet IMO.
I hadn't even considered that because I'm only a year from graduating. I'll look more into that for sure now though. Thank you
In my experience, having accounting experience is a great way to be considered for a finance job, but it doesn't replace the experience in finance. I would look to see if you can land any sort of role that is banking related, even if it's something 15-20 hours a week that is unpaid. Having that on your resume as a MAcc student with some other accounting background should be good enough to get you in the door for interviews. The rest is up to you. Just my thoughts, but I could be wrong.
I went to a no name school and took the Big 4 route. I was in a similar situation as you but MBA (Additional 40K) instead of MAcc. I ended up taking community college classes to fulfill 150 credit hours. My plan was to bust ass for 6 months at Big 4, not take the CPA, and then start recruiting/networking. After about a year at Big 4 I finally got a job offer for a MM bank in an Industry Group.
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