Career switch to Accounting

[GOAT 1]

I recently graduated with a geology degree, but only finished it because I had too many credits to switch majors. I am currently taking Principles of Accounting at a local community college in the hope of being accepted into a Masters of Accountancy program.

I want to work in Houston, and it seems everyone pushes getting a job at the Big 4 but I hear it's really stressful. When I read about entry-level accountant jobs at oil/gas companies, it seems that the pay and work-life balance (9/80 schedule) are better than Big 4 but it's harder to advance. I obviously have a long way to go, but I'm just looking for general advice.

 

[Onboard 2.0 9083]

Chartered accountancy ??! I think I'd ease into that career maybe via lion taming .........

[Chewbacca 7780]

Big 4 work sucks, but opens lots of doors.  If you can suck it up for 3 years, you can leave for a big pay raise and a much better work/life balance.

 

Everyone I know who works in O&G works their ass off, but they are paid well.

[mapplewhite132 309]

go into advisory

[pearlandhorn 3269]

Graduated from mccombs with the MPA. 99% of the people I graduated with went to public accounting. Good luck trying to find a company to recruit you at UT aside from public accounting firms. I’m not saying it isn’t possible, it’s just more difficult.

 

Big 4 gives a bunch of money to McCombs and the professors promote the hell out of them.

i left public accounting in Houston at a big 4 and went to one of my clients and became their corporate controller. You grit your teeth and do it. Kinda like a prostate exam. You know it’s beneficial for you and you hate it, but you gotta do it.

PwC is never leaving my resume. And they paid for the CPA exam.

[Brew 3049]

I’m a proponent of skipping Big 4 and going to a mid level firm. However, if you are focused on staying in a large city, you’ve pretty well got to go Big 4 at the beginning because the opportunities are more open down the road. You could also look at a second tier like at Grant, BDO, etc.

[bigcigar 1164]

If you go big 4, try to get into transaction advisory...even if you have to do audit first. Deal experience and accounting translates well down the road.

[pearlandhorn 3269]

36 minutes ago, Brew said:

I’m a proponent of skipping Big 4 and going to a mid level firm. However, if you are focused on staying in a large city, you’ve pretty well got to go Big 4 at the beginning because the opportunities are more open down the road. You could also look at a second tier like at Grant, BDO, etc.

Choosing between a big 4 and a mid level firm is the equivalent of having a Kobe beef steak or t-bone. The clients are better, it looks better on a resume, and if you get lucky, one of your clients will hire you.

Most mid tier firms in Houston don’t do a lot of oil and gas either.

Edited April 10, 2018 by pearlandhorn

[nolongerU2horn 765]

Accounting fucking sucks don’t do it 

[Brew 3049]

1 hour ago, pearlandhorn said:

Choosing between a big 4 and a mid level firm is the equivalent of having a Kobe beef steak or t-bone. The clients are better, it looks better on a resume, and if you get lucky, one of your clients will hire you.

Most mid tier firms in Houston don’t do a lot of oil and gas either.

Typical Big 4 knob slobbing opinion, which is why I’m anti Big 4. Too many Big 4 people are one trick pony’s that are too specialized and they’re constantly looking for the next step up. I’ve built a pretty large firm of people that rarely move on, like what they do and can serve multiple roles for clients, that also work reasonable hours on an annual basis. Plus, I can assure you as a fairly young MP of a top 120 firm I do pretty well.

However, I did agree that in a bigger city like Houston it makes sense to go Big 4 starting out if you are not planning on staying in public.

[JSB 677]

I'm in Dallas, and spent 4 years at EY before moving on.  It was hard work, but I learned a ton, and it opened a lot of doors for me.  Now that I'm in more of a management role, one of the qualifications I look for when going through resumes is Big 4 or mid-tier public accounting experience.  To me, it is a good indicator of someone that is willing to work hard when appropriate, and is a quick learner.  That said, I've interviewed a lot of dumb fucks with Big 4 experience, and hired some really bright people with no public accounting experience. 

I would suggest it if for no other reason than very few have ever been eliminated from a position because they have Big 4 experience, but plenty have been because they did not have Big 4.  Unfortunately I do know quite a few people that won't consider someone without Big 4 experience for certain types of roles.

Edited April 10, 2018 by JSB
Brew evidently has eliminated people because of Big 4

[GOAT 1]

Thanks for all the replies so far. I think the biggest reason for me wanting to go straight into industry is because finishing a M.S. in Accountancy will not make me eligible to sit for the CPA exam since my Bachelor's is in geology. The M.S. programs seem to be 36 credits, whereas to sit for the CPA exam I need 30 upper-level accounting classes plus 24 business classes.

I'm not even sure Big 4 will look at me for internships/full-time since I won't be close to being eligible to sit for the exam. I've heard industry doesn't care as much for entry-level, but I could be wrong

[mapplewhite132 309]

22 minutes ago, GOAT said:

Thanks for all the replies so far. I think the biggest reason for me wanting to go straight into industry is because finishing a M.S. in Accountancy will not make me eligible to sit for the CPA exam since my Bachelor's is in geology. The M.S. programs seem to be 36 credits, whereas to sit for the CPA exam I need 30 upper-level accounting classes plus 24 business classes.

I'm not even sure Big 4 will look at me for internships/full-time since I won't be close to being eligible to sit for the exam. I've heard industry doesn't care as much for entry-level, but I could be wrong

You don't need a CPA to be hired on as an associate. A lot of people in your situation take night classes at a community college to knock out their cpa eligibility requirements. For tax you don't need a credential (CPA or EA) until you make manager. I think audit requires a CPA to make senior associate but not too sure.

I started my career at PwC tax and have since moved to a mid market firm. I tend to agree with the logic of starting your career in big 4 and then moving on after your promotion to senior associate or after a promotion to manager. 

[GOAT 1]

On 4/9/2018 at 6:13 PM, mapplewhite132 said:

go into advisory

Isn't advisory pretty hard to get into? Also someone said with my geology degree that if I go into oil/gas to try to get onto cost control. Do you know anything about that?

[mapplewhite132 309]

Isn't advisory pretty hard to get into? Also someone said with my geology degree that if I go into oil/gas to try to get onto cost control. Do you know anything about that?

It’s more difficult than audit or tax but not impossible to get into. Can’t help you on the O&G stuff

[fattyflattie 4639]

Having spent 10 years in O&G and now in large construction, I can tell you there was a shitload of cost controllers/project controllers etc that were not accountants. Ymmv of course, but a business degree in finance, accounting (of course) and even general was common.   Having enough sense to know the core business and what we do is nearly as important. 

[Godzillatron 292]

Having spent 10 years in O&G and now in large construction, I can tell you there was a shitload of cost controllers/project controllers etc that were not accountants. Ymmv of course, but a business degree in finance, accounting (of course) and even general was common.   Having enough sense to know the core business and what we do is nearly as important. 

Project controls is a pretty good living if you want to go that direction.

[pearlandhorn 3269]

On 4/10/2018 at 6:55 PM, GOAT said:

Isn't advisory pretty hard to get into? Also someone said with my geology degree that if I go into oil/gas to try to get onto cost control. Do you know anything about that?

It's harder to get in to right out of college as there are limited opportunities in advisory.  One of the ways that you can get in to advisory is to do audit/tax for a few years and request a transfer.  A lot of it is based on needs of the firm you are working for.  If there is a hot transaction market with a lot of M&A, it would be easier at the time to transfer in.  I had a few friends that went to advisory after making senior associate at PwC.

[Jack Burton 35]

Be a cop/firefighter and retire in 20 years w/pension

[Tailleur17 361]

Accountants are riding the gravy train at the E&P company I work at in Houston. It is basically common knowledge that they don’t do much for relatively good pay. 8:30-4 hours with very little responsibilities or expectations.

 

Then again, I’m a geologist, so...I’m a bit biased against the non-technical personnel in O&G.

 

I’d say go for it. Great work if you can get it.

[Patricio Swayze 17058]

Having spent 10 years in O&G and now in large construction, I can tell you there was a shitload of cost controllers/project controllers etc that were not accountants. Ymmv of course, but a business degree in finance, accounting (of course) and even general was common.   Having enough sense to know the core business and what we do is nearly as important. 

I am project controls. I have two degrees from Texas...wait for it...RTF and History. Lulz. This is my second career and have been doing it for 10 years. I feel for that amount of time I am making a pretty decent living, although I am not overly ambitious (happy to just be a lead and not a PCM). In my group currently there are no accountants or engineers. A few with construction management degrees though. I work for a fairly large EPc (yes, small c) firm with offices all over the world.

More on topic, the accountants on our job, and at the company in general, seem to have it relatively stress free (especially compared to us in project controls/management). We used to work 4-10s (FUCK I MISS THAT), but now 9/80. I don’t know how they are paid, but they seem to be doing alright.

[Okie State 3821]

Accountants are riding the gravy train at the E&P company I work at in Houston. It is basically common knowledge that they don’t do much for relatively good pay. 8:30-4 hours with very little responsibilities or expectations.
 
Then again, I’m a geologist, so...I’m a bit biased against the non-technical personnel in O&G.
 
I’d say go for it. Great work if you can get it.

The longer I work, the more I realize that everyone thinks everyone else just sits around and does nothing all day. It's amazing any work gets done at all. The engineers in my family would probably say the same about geologists.

As for the OP, I think you'd be fine either way. O&G companies love to hire people with Big 4 experience, but plenty go straight into the industry and still do well for themselves. Big 4 will likely open a lot of doors, but you'll still need to prove yourself once you get in. The hours will most definitely be better in O&G.

[GOAT 1]

3 hours ago, Okie State said:

 

As for the OP, I think you'd be fine either way. O&G companies love to hire people with Big 4 experience, but plenty go straight into the industry and still do well for themselves. Big 4 will likely open a lot of doors, but you'll still need to prove yourself once you get in. The hours will most definitely be better in O&G.

 

Thanks for the advice. I still think I would lean towards going straight into industry if given the choice. I value work/life balance, good pay, and good benefits more than trying to climb the corporate ladder. If my end goal is oil/gas, to me it just makes sense to start there.

 

[RDCanecutter 26446]

You'll either go blind or you'll go crazy. Maybe both.

[Stunns38 3460]

I’d suggest you apply nationwide, gain experience, then move back to Houston. You MAY have a better shot that way.


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[Okie State 3821]

Thanks for the advice. I still think I would lean towards going straight into industry if given the choice. I value work/life balance, good pay, and good benefits more than trying to climb the corporate ladder. If my end goal is oil/gas, to me it just makes sense to start there.  

 

I'm sure it varies by company, but I've never noticed those with Big 4 experience climbing the ladder noticeably faster than those without. Probably helps in some scenarios, but so does being good at your job and knowing how to get the right people to notice. 

 

 

[pearlandhorn 3269]

If you don’t want to “climb the corporate ladder”, I wouldn’t get in to accounting. Especially if you are getting a masters degree and want to take the CPA exam.

Public accounting experience allows you to enter the corporate ladder at a higher point than starting in industry.

Edited April 15, 2018 by pearlandhorn

[GOAT 1]

When I said I don't want to climb the corporate ladder, I meant I really have no motivation to be a CFO or make Partner at a Big 4. I just want a stable career with good benefits and work/life balance.

I see job postings like these and they seem perfect for what I'm looking for. Not sure if working at a Big 4 for years is necessary to get jobs like these.

Phillips 66

Exxonmobil

[Okie State 3821]

It is not.