CPA to i-bank/hedge fund/pe

Big 4 experience, state school, 5.5 years out of college, what are my odds?

I would prefer the finance route, as I'm ok with long hours as money is priority for me.

2 things against me, I understamd 1) I'm 'old' to be taking a few steps back (27 yo). 2) It's hard to jump laterally from accounting to finance (they prefer math/engineer kids)

For me 1) CPA, (it matter anymore?) 2) Big 4 exp.

Is it possible, and would they start me at the bottom, FA? Grazi

 

Definitely would start as an analyst. In a different market, you may have had a chance - I've spoken with a lot of recruiters/senior bankers, and they LOVE the CPA distinction. IBanking, and finance in general, is built off of a foundation of accounting. Having a CPA says to them that you are a master of accounting - you know it inside and out. Whether this is true or not is debatable, but they love it.

You can also use the Big 4 experience to your advantage. There are a lot of good things about having an accounting background. I am not sure if you have access to an Alumni Community at your school, but try contacting some of the alums at banks and see what they have to say.

It's likely you'll end up having to go to business school, as dipset suggested, but there's no harm in contacting some of these guys - never know what could happen.

 

i think it also depends on what type of experience you've had. Big 4 can mean a lot of things - audit, tax, advisory (which can be broken down again in many ways). So jumping from a transaction services role, or some sort of financial advisory into Ibanking would not be as hard as doing it from a tax role.

 

thanks,

i was auditing large banks at big 4..i will pimp my cpa status in front of their face...

re: b-school, this might seem obvious..i'm guessing tier 1/higher end tier 2 programs to have any shot?..ie, dont go back to same state (cheap) school as undergrad?? also b school = mba, masters in finance/tax - do they prefer one over the other?

also, would they seriously consider me for summer internship due to my age..i hear they like them fresh and smooth

 

yeh, i think he's the type to get a semi reading businessweek rankings, yet can't do his own 1040EZ, filing single of course..

i have a buddy at gs who's passing my resume over once i'm unchained from tax season..i'm willing to apply to an 'accounting' position (global controls dept) and once in, give the lateral move a shot if i still covet..

i'm thinking the bschool propaganda is just more bs, as i have another buddy who got into cerebrus based on 'how clean he kept his bar.' oh and apparently it pays to be hot.

i don't mind sleeping my way in to avoid the bschool schlepping.

 

They make a valid point about if you want to switch careers, business school is an option, but people act like it is the only option. In reality, especially in this environment it is very difficult for people to switch industries...

 

Though dipset isn't one of the board's most brilliant members, he actually made a decent point about trying to switch into your firm's advisory practice. Generally they consider it if you've been there for 3+ years and you're a stud - I think that would give you a much better shot of getting into a nice finance role than lateraling in to mid-back office position at a BB.

FWIW, I have yet to begin my career either, so take this as you wish.

 

If you are 5 years into accounting, you should be a manager (minimum total comp of $120,000) regardless of location. Now if money is your priority, I would say you are better off staying as a manager at a big 4 because you would make more than any analyst at any level. if you can perform as a manager, between 5 -7 years, you can hit partner (minimum $600,000). oh I am currrently interning at a big 4, so I know what I am talking about.....then again, I do not know your situation, so cant really say.....if you think otherwise, I would suggest 700+ gmat, top 20 business school and then boutique....good luck!

 

i'm easily above 6 figs...alreadyrich, don't worry, your numbers are definitely not inflated..i personally know a partner in 7 figs (im in nyc) and he's not a regional manager, just brought in some big clients, and he's under 40..i wouldn't call him the "average" joe partner though..

i know i'm taking a HUGE step back, but my timescape is 10 years+, i want the big bucks..

but a lot of people are telling me that wall street is dead (at least will never the same) so i'm putting a lot of eggs in an industry that may never re-materilize...

then my other friends (pe/hf) tell me that so long as there are suckers born every minute who put money with the 'experts' wall street will be alive, even if under the guise of a 'bank holding' name.

i'd like to think americans will come out smarter from this wreckage, but until 1/10 becomes the new 2/20, it seems there will be an industry..

 
Best Response

Not that money isn't a part of why people do finance but your last post has me wondering if you've really thought this whole thing through. If you think "Wall Street" exists because of suckers, you probably don't have any idea what finance is at all. Even with a 1/10 model, HFs will pay more than any other job out there, provided they get solid returns (1/20 is probably more likely actually).

Anyhow, I would suggest not taking a step back and becoming an analyst. Get an MBA and become an associate. Analysts rarely make a career out of IB, and I'm not sure what the buyside would make of a 30 year old analyst. 5 years of Big 4 experience and an essay that revolves around more than just money should get you into a good b-school.

 

goodbrea, you're still green..suckers do get played, it's just called a good deal..and then when things go down..hey that's the market, it's noted in the prospectus..funny how 1.5 years after the fallout no one on the street can explain how collateralized mortgage obligtions were valued..bloomberg had a piece on this

the updates i receive in my inbox from sec issuances on control assessments procedures i have to perform are laughable, as they really don't know what's going on in a practical (real, daily) sense within banks, just textbook theories..but that deserves it's own thread, and i'm not trying to play fattie mike moore..

at this point, after seeing it from the inside out, might as well charge the elephant rent, instead of explaining it to people (my clients) who don't understand/pretend to see it's in the room

 

Wallstreet is not solely making money off suckers - that might work for an S+L that took home a nice payday unloading a few CMOs before they blew up on their balance sheets, but if you run a HF/PE fund with that attitude you're going to end up unemployed fairly fast.

Do you really think these "suckers" know how to invest money as well as professionals? There's a reason firms earn their fees.

 

it's hard for me as an accountant to explain to financiers, who typically transact/think only on the surface level (not all), the liberties that funds have in bucketing income/expenses to be realized on a specific quarter ('regulations' and all), therefore enabling anticipation when mass redemptions may occur..allowing pre-selling before the targeted quarter mayhem hits..

you can only witness this through actual exp..textbooks won't touch it, and guys who make it a life goal to preach this are labeled conspirators..i could care less about 'a cause' against wall st. when investors don't wanna do their homework..i'm at a point where the level of indifference makes it where i might as well get more vacation time in the interim..

maybe 'suckers' is a strong term for the tony robbins crowd.. let's replace with 'nicely suited, great marco-market conversationalists, msnbc 24/7 watching, but nowhere near as knowledgeable in terms of actual portfolio valuation' as the managers, or small peanuts who audit them.

 

I audit mutual funds, and I'm well aware of the little stunts we pull nearly everyday (keeping money market funds at a dollar by throwing in some cash out of pocket, spreading income adjustments over multiple periods to keep NAVs up...) But the fact of the matter, is that when the market was up, these suckers were getting returns, regardless of the little tricks we use to make things smooth. If everybody is making money, who cares about the accounting tricks used (Accountants are probably some of the last people you can blame for the current mess).

Now that everybody is getting crushed, HF investors are still doing much better on average than vanilla mutual fund ones, btw.

 

goodbrea, you come off as a smart, well-intended dude..you kinda remind me when i started off..i don't mean to get off topic with my initial post but just wanted to respond that the collective money made during 03-07 boom doesn't compare to the insane amounts made in oct/nov 2007 when the market collapsed and certain people had an 'itch' it was coming..wealth is never lost, just transferred from one set of hands to another..

you're last line is spot on...in an up or down economy, hf still get there fees (though less assets obv), hence my reasoning to jump ship

 

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