Big 4 Accounting
3.1 GPA, what are my odds of getting a b4 accounting offer this fall when they do recruiting
Trending Content
Career Resources
WSO Free Modeling Series - Now Open Through
April 30, 2024
9 Free Financial Modeling Lessons
Get instant access to lessons taught by experienced private equity pros and bulge bracket investment bankers including financial statement modeling, DCF, M&A, LBO, Comps and Excel Modeling.
+Bonus: Get 27 financial modeling templates in swipe file
+Bonus: Get 27 financial modeling templates in swipe file
How about a bit more detail?
What more do you want? I've done an externship with one of the b4, and this is my last yr in college
odds are very low. for entry level positions at a big4, you need a very good gpa. i know pwc and deloitte require you to have somewhere around 3.6-3.8, and it depends on office too. your best bet would be to network off your externship and see what someone can do to get you an interview. in all honesty, id aim for boutique
you are insane right?
Big 4 requires a minimum GPA of 3.0
that being said, they "prefer" you to have a 3.4+
I would network more. Ive known individuals with 2.8-3.0s easily get the better hand by networking over people that just apply on campus with 3.7+s
I mean, I'm not one of those college kids who's thinking the world will end if I don't get a big 4 job. Hell, I really just want it for my resume to get a high paying job in private industy. Too many accounting kids think they'll get in and make partner, and the odds are like 96% that you won't.
So, if I have to take a job with a regional firm or an entry accounting position with a local company, well the checks still cash.
Well if you tell us which school you go to, it would be easier to predict.
The school I went to, Big 4 firms take kids with 3.0 GPA. The school across the street, which the recruit heavily too, they asked for 3.4 GPA.
It all depends of the school you go to.
I would say that schools like BC, Babson, Cornell, NYU, Fordham, you would be in with a 3.0 Schools like Bentley, Northeastern, Bryant, Baruch...they would ask for 3.3-3.4
I went to school in the the Northeast, so try to make a parallel with your region
Welcome back Bocca.
Most F500 places (including Big 4) look for a minimum of a 3.0. I would trying a destroy your last few semesters and get them to a 3.2 or something. Start contacting alumni or applying online. Look at some govt jobs also. Comptroller of the currency, treasury, etc are all good places to start.
go to Umiami
I imagine that UM is a target for the Florida offices of the Big 4. Your best odds are probably contacting the people you met during the externship.
My friend is a partner at PWC in NYC. He says they require a min GPA of 3.5 for audit staff. I believe E&Y has a similiar requirement.
Deloitte and KPMG are 3.0 I think. If you didn't have an offer from your externship it 's tough unless you know somebody who can help you. Even mid size firms like JH Cohn and Weiser usually hire straight from their summer interns. Look for summer internships now, or make some connections. If you know someone to pass along your resume, you're golden.
If you're in Florida look for Kaufman Rossin, I heard theyre awesome to work for in the area and are very well respected.
You have a decent shot at a low level office but I would think (and I could be wrong) that you may be better served working in a larger office with a lesser named company. Is working for EY in Ocala Florida really better than a Mid Market outfit in DC...debateable.
Big Four Accounting Question (Originally Posted: 03/02/2015)
Hi everyone,
I recently accepted a full time offer with a Big Four Accounting firm (assurance service line). I have a decent UG GPA (3.77) and a 4.0 in my grad program (it's one of those accelerated MBA programs to receive the 150 credit hours to qualify for sitting for the CPA). Big Four's recruit heavily from my current university despite that it's a non target. Seeing as I am an extremely high strung and anxious person--I have these horrible fears about the company rescinding my offer. Here's why:
I am an older student. I am a 28 year old female and will be 29 when I start. Would anyone consider this an issue for the company when they complete the background check e.g. to possibly spur the company to come up with some pretense to rescind the offer?
I believe my credit score is fine (no bankruptcy issues, etc.), but seeing as I am not working at the moment, I have a small credit card bill (~550 balance) that I was late making some payments on. Is this an issue for a background check?
*I am not in danger of failing any classes or receiving low grades; such as C's and D's--assuming no extenuating circumstances arise in the near future. Also, no criminal background, only a few traffic violations--I am a woman after all and we are horrible drivers.
Can someone enlighten me regarding if the above statements are issues and will increase the probability of having an offer rescinded? Advise will be much appreciated.
Age shouldn't be any kind of an issue when you start your job. I was 28 going on 29 when I started at the Big Four firm I currently work for. Another gentleman in my starting class is 27, and a gal working in another service line is 31. If so some reason they do rescind your offer, the last thing I would think it would is for your age (at least I would hope not).
I believe there's an independence rule that states you can't have more than X amount of credit card debt (10,000 in total i believe), but again Big 4 get's people from all walks of life. Considering the amount of college students they hire that have probably never even owned a credit card in their name, your credit score should have a bearing on your hiring.
The only cases that I've heard of offers being rescinded is if the person does something incredible stupid or disrespectful to warrant it. For example, during the first year hiring training, a first year (guy) hire got in a huge shouting match with another first year (girl), and basically called her an "f@&king c$nt" in front of a huge group of people, some of whom where partners from the firm. Needless to say, he was not at training the next day. Unless they can link you back to a murder or find out you're secretly a jihad terrorist, you should be fine.
Age is not an issue. The Big 4 is all about diversity, so your age may actually be a benefit. In fact, my current first year associate is 28, three years older than I am. Accounting firms are also actively recruiting women (and giving them incredible benefits).
credit score isn't an issue. Carrying a balance doesn't matter -- what crackjack was referring was truly just an independence issue once you join the firm, and even then it just means you can't audit the client if the debt exceeds 10k. In fact, it takes a lot for an offer to get rescinded for background check issues (as long as you are forthright). I know a guy who got an offer after getting a DUI the summer before starting.
Take a breath. you are fine
Congrats on the offer, your fears are 100% unfounded, the offer will not be rescinded. Big 4 regularly hire people in their 30's and 40's out of grad school. I'm one of them. That credit card balance is irrelevant. Bank-on-this's post below is correct, but to be more accurate you are not a "covered person." Again, well done...and stay away from whomever gave you these questions/doubts about your offer.
Very solid advice from all of you--thanks for taking the time to reply :)
Motivating advise sharing with us, thanks!!
Big Four Accounting (Originally Posted: 10/09/2012)
I went through a leadership program as a Freshman with KPMG and absolutely loved it. As a result, i'm interning with them the summer before my sophomore year.
Here's my predicament/wealth of opportunities.
I just want to know what my options are in terms of the other firms. Although I like KPMG, I just don't know what I'm missing with the other firms, namely PwC.
I plan on finishing my internship with KPMG next summer, and, worst case scenario, let's say I don't like it so, given that they offer me another one for the following summer, I decline the offer.
Can I still pursue opportunities and intern at another Big Four firm? I just didn't know whether the other firms refused to even look at you if you had already interned at a Big Four competitors. And if I decline the offer and find that KPMG is the best fit for me, can I go back to them for full-time opportunity (obviously I can't for the internship hypothetically declined)
HELP! If anyone has experienced this or knows whether you can intern at one firm and then another or not, any input would be appreciated! Nothing is decided, other than my internship next summer, I just want to know what my options are!
Join the Big 4 Accounting group and see the post about choosing a firm. No, having an internship with one firm will not disqualify you from having an internship with the others. However, if you are halfway decent, you'll get an offer from KPMG, and you will have to turn it down to get an internship from the other Big 4. It's questionable whether they will take you back or not - it depends on how you leave it.
Are Big 4 Accounting Firms a good fallback? (Originally Posted: 09/01/2016)
So I interned for a large investment bank this past summer (think RBC, SocGen, BNP), and did not end up getting an offer. It appears that the street has tightened up a bit from a couple contacts I talked to (maybe just firms of my contacts, but it seems like hiring for analysts is tighter in regards to head count than last year). I could pursue some boutiques (non-elite), or have an opportunity to work at PwC in a non-investment banking role in NYC where I would be consulting banks on regulatory compliance issues.
While obviously working for a no-name boutique would mean I am doing work that I enjoy more, at PwC I would get to be in New York City and as a consultant I would constantly be building my network. Which do you think would be better for my career?
Current Big 4 employee here. From a transitional perspective, I think it would be easier to transfer to a BB IBD group after working in a boutique shop based on my own research. Working in Big 4 is all about the CPA and winning audit work, even though they do have strong consulting practices. If you are in a group working on regulatory compliance projects...I don't know if that translates well to IB work. You might be better off doing a year in the boutique to continue learning the business and building modeling/excel skills that are directly applicable to an Analyst role at a BB. "Consulting on regulatory compliance issues" sounds to me like you will basically be working as an internal auditor at banks.
I would also mention that there is no harm in accepting your PwC offer so you have something in your pocket when you graduate. You may burn a bridge with you recruiter, but the 'at-will' employment clause in your contract makes it possible to renege if you find the IBD job you want, albeit not best practice obviously.
If all you have is Big 4 and aspire to transition into banking, making sure you try very hard to get into the Transaction Services or Transaction Advisory Services (I believe PwC calls it TS) in the financial due diligence group. IMO that provides the best exit to IB.
Despite the name the transaction advisory services is not close to IB. The big 4 refer to their IBD teams as corporate finance.
@Bkoach: So you are right in that I would be getting better experience at a regional boutique... Although with PwC I would have a recognizable name and the ability to network easier.. I might have the experience from working at a boutique, but my experience has been that it is more about who you know than what you know. Would you agree? I think this is the main dilemna I am trying to figure out.. is it better to know more knowledge, or know more people?
Know more people.
Know more people for sure, but I wouldn't discount how much your network can grow working at a boutique. It depends on whether or not you want to put in the effort to build it.
With that said, when you start looking for your next job, you'll want to show how what you have done can be applied to whatever the job is that you want. If you want to try to make the jump into IB, then working as an internal auditor (which is what the PwC job probably actually is - as someone stated above) isn't going to be anywhere near as good as the boutique experience in terms of transferable skills, regardless of name.
It's really up to you and how much you believe in your own networking skills. Sure, you may not have a network fed to you at the boutique, but do you believe you can build a network that works for you? If you answer yes, then you'll find it easier to sell your experience at the boutique versus PwC.
Could be true. On the one hand, PwC is obviously a great name and you'll be in NYC, so you'll have great IB networking opportunities even if your job is more focused on working with compliance and middle office folks. On the other, you'll probably work IB hours many times without getting paid for it and you may be more focused on auditing compliance controls, which is quite different from doing valuations obviously. You might get to meet some higher-ups at your clients, but those relationships are maintained by the more senior team members for the most part. I guess it's all relative -- either way you'll get good experience and start building your network. Who knows -- maybe you end up loving the PwC gig and give it a couple years. You could always leverage that experience into an MBA program and do IB after that. You'll have options as long as you keep working hard and networking.
I'm currently working in Big Four Valuation. Obviously a bit different than OPs expected role, but does anyone have any thoughts on how to make the most of this role if I do try and lateral into IB?
Accounting - Worked at Big 4 (Originally Posted: 07/27/2011)
After working at the Big 4 for a period of time what are some of the career outlooks you have?
During that time if I were to pursue an MBA would the Big 4 firm help me get into a top MBA program? Also, would that increase my chances of finding a high paying career and put me on the track to a senior level position?
What are some of the industries that like to pick up people with these types of credentials?
Deleniti et qui itaque sit. Aspernatur deleniti autem ut perferendis. Aut eveniet accusantium atque dicta sunt cupiditate eum. Vel nesciunt praesentium accusamus et.
Tempore et sapiente consequatur veritatis. Et inventore libero iusto ut nemo repellendus.
Saepe veritatis reiciendis sit quo nihil. Excepturi vel quis eligendi repellat quaerat ducimus fugit officia. Similique atque ab facilis doloribus aspernatur pariatur. Maiores earum ab ipsa omnis. Voluptatem mollitia provident necessitatibus ut.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...
Omnis aperiam provident ratione quas. Magnam dolor vitae eos aperiam est rerum. Molestias explicabo officiis aspernatur. Natus sit omnis magnam quia cumque necessitatibus.
Eos exercitationem quisquam eos est accusamus sit. Doloribus sint deserunt atque asperiores. Veritatis tempore dolorem sit rerum adipisci veritatis. Totam sed suscipit dolores sit. Dolore doloremque a sequi molestiae qui. Eveniet nam sunt ea libero. Qui quisquam qui rem iusto dolores ut modi quis.
Et soluta id repudiandae ut enim provident. Sapiente accusantium facere quae alias et asperiores. Laboriosam libero veniam sapiente officia. Et doloremque quae ab distinctio id sit reprehenderit.