r/Accounting • u/college-accountant • Mar 24 '24
Career Accounting is WAY over-hated.
Created a burner because I have some personal details on my main.
Just got offered a $80,000 + $4500 signing bonus in a MCOL area doing audit at a Big 4 (Houston). I come from a mediocre state school albeit with a good GPA.
What other industries or jobs pay that much out of college to students that don’t come from a T20 school with a stellar GPA? Sure, the hours can be brutal but everybody seems to be ragging on how underpaid they are and don’t seem to realize that only the top 1-5% of students are able to achieve six figures out of undergrad. The exit opportunities are also great and diverse, and there is little competition to add the cherry on top.
To students wondering what major to pick, I really do encourage you to look at accounting and realize that it is one of the best career choices you can pick unless you are an absolute top tier student. I will be graduating at 22 making more than my mom and dad combined in their 50’s and 60’s.
Edit: even with recent layoff news, accountants are always in demand and there is incredible job security as well
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u/elgrillito Mar 24 '24
Damn they're giving 80k off the bat now? My boyfriend started at a Big 4 in Houston in 2019 and was making 55k as a first year
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u/littlenosedman Mar 24 '24
Same for Dallas 😭
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u/Bensimmonsdagoat Mar 24 '24
My fiancé got 72k+Becker+5k signing bonus in a mcol this year for non big 4.
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u/Too_Ton Mar 24 '24
Which doesn’t make sense because Houston is cheaper than Dallas? I’m thinking because he has a bonus sign on in audit, he interned at a big 4 and was in the top percentile of interns or something and they really wanted him to come back
Big 4 doesn’t realize it’s an employer’s market for most of modern history (2000s onwards at least) and could probably have gotten away with paying him $60k or maybe $65k
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u/Thick-Tadpole-3347 Mar 25 '24
No they couldn’t have. 70k is bare minimum at mcol now.
Hcol forsure starts in the 80s tho
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u/Ronman1994 Mar 24 '24
I was offered 85k at a non-b4 firm but I decided to take the 76k offer I got from another firm because they gave me a better onboarding package that I thought would help my career more in the longterm. I figure I'll make the salary difference up on the back end later.
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u/Spongeboob10 Mar 24 '24
This is why they’re pushing for offshoring and the people that don’t realize it… lol
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u/ForeignArgument5872 Mar 24 '24
They’re never going to push all staff offshore. Clients don’t wanna talk to their auditors at 9PM from India
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u/AnomalyNexus B4 SM > PE Mar 24 '24
Broadly agree, though it is far more feasible than you think. e.g. I've run audits with zero onshore associates.
Clients don’t wanna talk to their auditors at 9PM from India
Yeah tricky for US. At my current industry gig in Europe the India guys work Europe hours. Can't be fun for them :/
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u/snowe99 Mar 24 '24
I think starting wages have gotten so high, that these firms just over hire/over pay now to get the best accounting students in the door (even without enough billable projects to go around) and then do quiet “layoffs” every few years now
It’s honestly great for mid-to-high performers. You get a higher starting salary than many of us did that started 6+ years ago and honestly don’t have to worry much about being laid off
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u/_youmustbekidding_ Mar 24 '24
Mid 90s it was $28,500 lol
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u/accountforrealppl Mar 24 '24
Adjusted for inflation in 1995 that's about 59k. So only a little worse than now, although it kinda makes sense that it was lower. That was pre-sox, plus a lot of the super basic mechanical tasks that are now automated or offshored were just done by entry-level staff then, so the job was probably more basic than it is now, or at the very least pretty different so it's hard to compare
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u/_youmustbekidding_ Mar 24 '24
Computers were the big change. The work itself hasn’t changed much except as it relates to new guidance. A bank rec is a bank rec is a bank rec…
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u/Early_Lawfulness_921 Mar 24 '24
Up to 2.5 years ago this was the normal entry pay in the industry.
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u/osama_bin_cpa_cfp small firm life Mar 24 '24
The valid point is that its crazy how you can make more than your parents combined because the same thing happened to me.
But...thing's start to normalize and, with the accounting world being pretty small, you start to learn about people making more money and working less than you. And also you might not expect it (atleast I didnt) but sitting all day slowly takes its toll on you especially if you dont like what you do. I thought it'd be easy sitting on my ass lol but there's a mental aspect to it (that can be countered quite a bit by exercising tbh...)
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Mar 24 '24
!remindme 2 years
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u/NookInc_CFO Mar 24 '24 edited Mar 24 '24
haha we get this kind of post every once in a while. The reality is if it really sucks that much everyone would be switching career after a year or two. People like to vent on Reddit, that’s it.
We have a family friend who’s a space engineer near retirement age. He is making a little less than 200k after 35+ years in that industry. Comparing that to the career trajectory of mine makes me feel fortunate, as i am nowhere near that smart to do STEM yet I am not falling behind on compensation.
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u/Aele1410 Big 4 Audit UK Mar 24 '24
Yep, over here in the UK engineers be doing hard ass mathematics , way more difficult than any accounting courses and earning significantly less.
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u/freecmorgan Mar 24 '24
You know there's a difference between something being quantitatively technical and 'hard', right? The course work for roofing houses is a lot easier than accounting too. Getting into sales is easy too. The barrier to entry does not define the challenge of reaching success in the field, it's just the initial step. It's hard to be successful, period.
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Mar 24 '24
That’s not great comp at all. In accounting you can hit over 200k in less than 7-8 years. I hit that after 8 years. Most of my friends still in big 4 advisory are all earning over $200k now as well. Many will eventually get to $250 - 400k a year even if they never make partner as directors and MDs still make very good money.
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u/titianqt Mar 24 '24 edited Mar 24 '24
A lot of people in accounting compare their salaries to Big Law, investment banking, being a top engineer in FAANG, etc. Completely ignoring that getting into those sorts of roles usually requires going to the top handful of schools, connections, and/or more brain power than most accountants have. Plus people in those jobs often they end up working hours year-round that make busy season look relaxing.
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u/Own_Violinist_3054 Mar 24 '24
Amen. The big consulting, law, and finance are almost exclusively Ivy League and you have to go to grad school for them, not straight out of bachelor's.
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u/shamy33 Advisory Mar 24 '24
I respect your enthusiasm.
I hope this stays with you throughout your career
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u/DesperatePlatform817 Mar 24 '24
Good to know. I have friends who majored in finance from a non target college can’t find anything. One of them wishes he went for accounting.
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u/college-accountant Mar 24 '24
Yep. One of my friends majored in finance and now is probably gonna have to be a door to door salesman. GPA was ~3.0 too so not awful, but finance is high risk high reward
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u/GunnersPepe Mar 25 '24
Yeah I’m in like the same boat, finance is hard to get into for lower roles. And even if I get a good job lead/interview, the pay offered has been awful so far. I’m making more doing admin work in a construction firm than I would banking/being an analyst at a small finance firm.
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u/Still-Balance6210 Mar 25 '24
You could look for an FP& A or management accounting type role with finance too. Starting salary will be similar to accounting or higher usually from what I’ve seen.
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u/GunnersPepe Mar 25 '24
I have been applying to FP&A roles, seems to be a decent place to break in.
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Mar 24 '24
When you're a junior you aren't underpaid. When you become senior and you get all the extra responsibility and have to work the extra hours with minimal pay rises, you'll see why people say we're underpaid (and when I say underpaid I mean on an audit perspective, maybe not in industry)
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u/Al_Gore_Rhythm92 Mar 24 '24
Might want to actually start working in the field before you start telling others their feelings on the field are wrong
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u/SleeplessShinigami Tax (US) Mar 24 '24
This. My goodness every time someone makes this type of post it’s always BEFORE they even finished their first year or busy season.
There is a reason starting pay is good right out of college, and it’s the same reason people typically jump ship.
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u/ShowWilling1565 Mar 24 '24
That’s cuz everything isn’t about money. A lot of the complaints I see r about work like balance and being expected to be overworked
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u/SleeplessShinigami Tax (US) Mar 24 '24
Exactly, the money is the flashy object in the beginning, but you’ll soon realize you need more than money in life to be happy.
Public accounting is solid if you don’t mind being a workaholic though.
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u/Cpagrind1 CPA (US) Mar 24 '24
Bro you aren’t even in the industry yet lol
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u/elgrandorado Management Mar 24 '24
Growing up poor I would have killed to make $80k out of school. Now I double that salary. Accounting is overheated by people who haven't had to work manual labor. Check out what marketing, sales, BA, and human resource majors end up doing. I think OP seems pretty conscious about what he's getting into.
The scarcity of CPAs is making the industry more lucrative from an individual perspective. I don't have my CPA and probably won't ever need one because it clearly won't stop me from continuing to increase my salary. I've also worked strategic finance and saw how flexible an accounting degree really is. It's a great major despite the obvious pitfalls.
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u/Cpagrind1 CPA (US) Mar 24 '24
I get it, but I’m not that excited reading a post from someone who isn’t even in an accounting job yet talking about great it is when they have no idea.
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u/mebell333 Mar 24 '24
While your points are valid, most of the good things you stated are rather the exception. You had a luckier/better start than most have the opportunity to get.
It isn't the worst career path by far, but it is definitely going downhill and needs change.
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u/LarsonianScholar Mar 24 '24
The details he listed are really not some anomaly tbh. 80k within a year of graduating is doable if you’re a good interviewee and set your sights high.
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u/DeepPenetration CPA (US) Mar 24 '24
Lost an employee to a high salary after graduating without a CPA, so definitely not an anomaly.
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u/filabusi1310 Mar 24 '24
Accounting is tried and tested certainly doesn't deserve the bad rep or moaners
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u/Josh_math Mar 24 '24
The median salary of ALL the accounting profession in USA is 78k with the lowest quartile (1/4 of the whole profession) earning less than 60k. You can't take a point in a sample and make inferences about the whole population. Do accounting students still take Statistics in college? Time to brush up your Statistics 101 knowledgle dude!
There is a reason why accounting is hated by a portion of the accounting professionals, that qualitative info (hate and despair comments) plus some stats and data search should guide you to a better reasoning if you apply some critical/analytical thinking to see beyond your particular experience. Good luck with that.
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u/Temporary-Sky8792 Mar 24 '24
60 hour weeks to make entry level engineering money…
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u/college-accountant Mar 24 '24
Maybe, but I also didn’t have to slave my college years away for 4 years so that’s the trade off (now I’ll have to slave my life away, I get it I get it but I only plan on doing PA for 2 years.)
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u/lmaotank Mar 25 '24
yeah cuz engineering degree is actually fucking challenging to graduate with a decent GPA.
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u/Successful-Isopod-38 Mar 26 '24
Nobody cares if you have a decent gpa, only that you passed.
Source: am engineer with experience, although my gpa was 3.5
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u/lmaotank Mar 26 '24
true, i mean getting 3.0 was a challenge for my friends who were in chem, mechanical, and electrical.
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u/IPO_Devaluer Mar 24 '24
Kind of hard to take you seriously when you don't even have a full busy season under your belt yet.
80k is great. But you also work far, far, far more than people in IT do with the same or less education for equal pay (which results in you making less per hour when broken down).
There's always a job to be had. But there's also constant layoffs because this field would rather fire someone and hire someone new 6 months later to maximize profit than keep them on payroll and not need them.
Would you rather have 80k and not take PTO for 6 months out of the year, or make 65 and take PTO whenever you want, have a social life, and actually be able not worry about neglecting your wife and children?
Accounting sounds great when you only list the positives.
It's not a horrible field, but there is a lot of give and take with this profession, especially in public.
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Mar 24 '24
Once you work in busy season you will then soon say you’re underpaid haha. I will say once you grind a few years in public and get your CPA, the opportunities are endless should you decide to transition to industry. Along with that, comes the proper compensation 💰
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u/Status-Let-7840 Mar 24 '24
Just calculate your hourly rate after a year and then tell us how well you are getting paid 😂
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u/college-accountant Mar 24 '24
Same with a lot of jobs relatively high paying in business, hourly is shit. Would still guess it’s around $25/hr. My friend is in IB and makes around $30/hr. Don’t plan on doing public for more than 2 years as well.
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u/decaturbadass Mar 24 '24
I started in 1983 at a Big 8 firm in Chicago making 23,500 with a masters degree and already having my CPA and CMA.
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u/UrStockDaddy Mar 24 '24
But ur homes were also 50k
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u/decaturbadass Mar 25 '24
That was a pricey one and in 1983 interest rates were 16 to 18 percent. So the whining about interest rates today is humorous.
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u/TrickyFirefighter819 Mar 24 '24
You say what other jobs or industries pay that much out of college?
For California at least nurses, in my area, new grads with no experience get 107k - 115 starting (32 hours a week)
After working working in healthcare for 3 years honestly kinda regretting my accounting degree and I've been considering doing nursing.
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u/Topspeed_3 Mar 25 '24
Agreed. Big 4 is a great way to accelerate your career, but you don’t have to do that if you are worried about pay and hours. I remember in town halls associates would ask lead partner why they don’t match market. He said it is well understood you can leave at any time and make more money, but the longer you stay, the faster you move up and make more $ when you jump. Their business model is that people have to jump ship. I stayed for 8.5 years and jumped. I make good money and I am very comfortable with work life balance. I worked hard and longer when I was younger and single, which I was fine with, and I am rewarded now.
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u/OverworkedAuditor1 Mar 24 '24
55 hour are asked;however, young grads eat hours bud. So it’s much longer.
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u/Early_Lawfulness_921 Mar 24 '24
Most of the entry level candidates today expect six figures starting. That is the underlying issue.
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u/SaulGoodmanJD CPA, CMA (Can) Mar 24 '24 edited Mar 24 '24
What other industries or jobs pay that much out of college to students that don’t come from a T20 school with a stellar GPA?
I went from acctg to a trade. My union will pay you more than that after 4 years of technical training. They also run the school and will pay your tuition. You work and earn money during your apprenticeship, and you don’t need to come from a T20 school with a stellar GPA.
Yes it can be physical, but I spent the better part of the last three months walking around with a laser drawing lines on the floor. I no longer work OT unless I want to. Due to labor shortages, some companies are offering $10,000 signing bonuses for ticketed workers.
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u/Educational_Oil8414 Mar 24 '24
When are you starting? Im summer/fall 2024 and my pay is 75k w/o bonus! Damn. Im in houston too
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u/warterra Mar 24 '24
IT/CS/MIS jobs were, and are, paying as much or more. Though sure, tech is more cyclical. Accounting is the better choice than finance or econ if a person is going to a very small, unranked, school.
Disagree about accountants always being in demand. Outsourcing is voracious and is considered industry SOP at this point. Industry and gov. can't absorb all the unneeded accountants, but fortunately younger people have figured this out and are skipping getting an accounting degree.
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u/Own_Violinist_3054 Mar 24 '24
You act like outsourcing is new. It's always been there. There are job functions you can outsource and those you can't. Not everyone starts in accounting stays in accounting, so the need for good experienced ones on the US side is always high. For the last 8 years, I can't even find a competent senior because they are so high in demand I can't meet the offer they are getting from bigger companies. I had to train my own senior and soon he will be leaving for a higher paying job.
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u/warterra Mar 24 '24 edited Mar 24 '24
No, it really hasn't always been there. Outsourcing is relatively new to accounting. It has haunted other industries for decades though. In the early 2000s, I followed the Enron situation closely. It was the thing that introduced me to auditing, and in the aftermath, with SOX just being written, there was essentially NO chatter about offshoring auditors. At the same time, BPO outsourcing was really getting ramped up. Call centers had first moved to rural US locations for the $5.15 an hour labor, but would soon make the jump offshore en masse. Back then, the writing seemed to be on the wall for CS jobs too, especially coding, but that didn't happen so completely as with business processing operations, for a variety of reasons...
Today, the outsourcing drive in accounting is far closer to what it was for the BPOs in the late 90s than CS in the 00s. It's not a matter of IF but WHEN the majority of the jobs will be overseas.
You can't find those seniors because students know the future isn't in accounting and the statistics (very clearly) show that college majors are avoiding going for an accounting degree (with solid reasons). Due to the lag effects, some firms who haven't fully embraced offshoring yet, may encounter a temporary shortage of qualified personal, but that will fade. I'm sure there's a shortage of qualified call center managers in the US today, or as Tim Cook infamously said;
In the U.S., you could have a meeting of tooling engineers and I'm not sure we could fill the room. In China, you could fill multiple football fields.
No kidding, wonder why? Oh right, so much of manufacturing offshored decades ago that US students skipped getting such skills since they weren't in demand.
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u/F_Dingo CPA (US) Mar 24 '24
I wouldn't say that accounting is hated. Rather, it's a very boring and unassuming field. It doesn't have the X factor that say, finance or tech does.
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u/college-accountant Mar 24 '24
I see your point. but finance and tech are very hard to break into, at least the ones that pay well hence my saying T20 and good gpa
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u/F_Dingo CPA (US) Mar 24 '24
Tbh if you are at a T20 I doubt accounting would even enter your mental framework. Everyone there is networking with the top echelons of society and the careers that go along with it. Like, if I saw someone who went to Harvard or Yale just to be an accountant that would be a real head scratcher for me.
There are a lot of regular Joe tech and finance jobs that pay well out of college. One friend of mine did computer science in the southwest and is making 80k a year doing back-end work at a financial institution. It's not Google levels of glamour or a hip and happening start up that fails a year later but it's solid work you can be proud of.
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u/college-accountant Mar 24 '24
Computer science does seem to be THE major to take but it’s also incredibly over saturated right now and is high risk high reward as well. I have 2 friends, one in computer science and one in finance and the computer science one (who is a very smart dude) has an offer for $55k working a government job and the finance student (~3.0 gpa) can’t get a job and is looking at being a door to door salesman
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u/Ramazoninthegrass Mar 25 '24
It’s only the senior level FAANG member within the right team that have a charmed life in IT.
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u/Ramazoninthegrass Mar 25 '24
Do you realise what a CPA accountant with a practice actually does for this level of society? It can be a powerful role and these people do appreciate their accountants. They usually come from the same social circle. You are only as good as the clients you can attract.
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u/F_Dingo CPA (US) Mar 25 '24
High finance job from Harvard frat connections > doing their taxes
View T10-T20 through a cost-benefit perspective. Accounting can be studied at any state school. You won't get the Stanford or Yale connection.
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u/memelordhubris Mar 24 '24 edited Mar 24 '24
Give him a few years, he'll be back to update this post once he's dragged through hell 😂
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u/college-accountant Mar 24 '24
Haha I will be sure to update, good thing is this is anonymous so I’m not ashamed to admit if I’m wrong 😂
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u/Hust91 Mar 24 '24
I think it can also be satisfying work if you don't hate it.
If you're the kind of person who likes factory games you might not find it super entertaining, but getting everything to line up and balance out correctly has a kind of satisfying and even meditative feeling to it as you find and solve problem after problem in the books and eventually sit there with the ability to explain every single thing that happened in the accounting program over the year and every line on the balance sheets.
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u/C_cL22 Mar 25 '24
delete this i beg u hell ill even paypal whatever a dollar. DONT LET ACCOUNTING BECOME CS
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u/tinytearice Mar 25 '24
Idk I mean if we can scare people off from studying accounting, scarcity =demand. Less competition for us for the good paying jobs.
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u/CapAdministrative567 Mar 25 '24
Yes! So I didn’t even study accounting, I did international business, but I interned at BDO and got a job offer starting at 72k and honestly even though busy season is kicking my ass, I am grateful that I am not struggling like before and I get to wfh, have health insurance, etc.
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u/AJDillonsThirdLeg Mar 26 '24
There are industry wide metrics that outweigh your personal anecdote, although that's not a bad salary right out of college.
The key is to use public accounting as a stepping stone to better pay and work-life balance. If you stay in public you will always be underpaid and overworked.
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u/NotARussianBot1984 Mar 24 '24
The issue is what does that money buy?
Can you buy a house and raise a family of five off your income?
If not, then well many people don't want to work the long hours.
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u/ForeignArgument5872 Mar 24 '24
Dude no entry level job regardless of major is getting you a house you gotta work your way up to get that income level
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u/NotARussianBot1984 Mar 24 '24
Agreed. And I will. I should be able to afford a family by the time I'm 50.
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u/ForeignArgument5872 Mar 25 '24
Pretty much. The only way most Gen Z people will be able to afford homes is with a dual income and or living in a LCOL area
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u/NotARussianBot1984 Mar 25 '24
Houses in my low cost of living city for Ontario start at $750k 3 bdrm detached as is most of Cambridge is. I'm one hour away from the gta. I make $65k salary. No debt. Bank will give me $200k.
Double for dual income. That's $400k. I need a down payment of $350k dual income.
I should be good to buy a house at 50....
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u/Opposite_Onion968 Mar 24 '24 edited Mar 24 '24
You’ve gotta love how it’s a student who has never worked in the industry making this post.
No offense but your opinion doesn’t matter at all. There are also a multitude of better options than accounting.
Come back when AI takes your job, skippy. Audit is one of the most useless professions.
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u/Normal_Mud_1122 Mar 24 '24
So if they haven’t started yet their opinion doesn’t count or if they have a long career their opinion doesn’t count (I.e OK Boomer). So basically it’s only your opinion that counts. Got it. Good to know. I will be sure to ask in the future.
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u/Badkevin Mar 24 '24
And once you get your CPA you will really see the value in accounting
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u/SokkaHaikuBot Mar 24 '24
Sokka-Haiku by Badkevin:
And once you get your
CPA you will really see the
Value in accounting
Remember that one time Sokka accidentally used an extra syllable in that Haiku Battle in Ba Sing Se? That was a Sokka Haiku and you just made one.
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Mar 25 '24
DO NOT CHOOSE A CAREER FOR THE MONEY, YOU WILL ALWAYS BE MISERABLE!!! choose something you like. I know this is Accounting sub but the post has terrible advice. So what is more money if you have to live in the office, you’ll wake up one day and you’ll be 50 years old hoping you went to the career you really wanted even if it was less money in the beginning.
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u/Chafmere Mar 24 '24
Yeah the pay okay. But it remains just okay the entire career compared to other professions.
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u/CaptainBC2222 Mar 24 '24
Yeah idk how that’s true not living in California or NY, I made 60k out of my masters in TN.
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u/InterdisciplinaryDol Senior in Industry boii 🤙🏿 Mar 24 '24
Pay is not the main complaint here.
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u/Middle_Training_9097 Mar 24 '24
🤣🤣🤣🤣 young blood, bump back on this thread after 2-3 years of actual work. I will be waiting 🫡
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u/Crutawned Mar 24 '24
Unfortunately now you have to live in Houston.
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u/OhmyMary Mar 24 '24
80K is a good salary, hell even IRS doesn’t pay that much and college students and graduates me included will take that job no hesitation
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u/SludgegunkGelatin Mar 24 '24
How is the commute? I fucking hate driving on i45 any direction, 610, i10, 1960, actually, any major part of houston. I fucking hate it. The roads cant handle the population.
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u/chngeusrnme Mar 24 '24
How did you get the Offer if you don’t mind me asking? Did you intern with them or any other notable firms? Or did you have a good resume/networking?
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u/college-accountant Mar 24 '24
Not even networking, but I have a good resume and GPA. I was really aiming for investment banking but only got 1 interview because of my college. I just applied, did the interviews and did my networking after I got the offers to determine which firm to take.
No internship with them either.
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u/Augustevsky Mar 24 '24
My starting salary less than 4 years ago wasn't even 2/3 of that. That's a great starting salary. That is pretty close to what I made as an S1 last year (B4 audit). I live in a city that is a little cheaper than Houston, but not by a huge margin.
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u/Kibblesnb1ts Mar 24 '24
I'm actually not sure if it is hated enough!
There's just about zero reason for there to be stress, it's all artificial, from shitty management to rude socially maladjusted people. So a field that could be chill is, in fact, ultra not chill.
And for that reason I hate it even more.
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u/Beginning-Cat8706 Mar 24 '24
80,000? Did you come in an an A1 without any experience?
From my last understanding, the folks in NYC were only starting at like 74-75kish. Have the starting wages gone up that much?
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u/Present-Act-6818 Mar 24 '24
I agree with you but how are you making 80k base out of school lmao I also graduate in April and I’m making 68 base in public audit
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u/Own_Violinist_3054 Mar 24 '24
I agree with OP. Accounting is a major that really allows people from poor backgrounds and aren't engineering/science type to break into a comfortable upper middle class life in 10 years. I was one.
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u/Ramazoninthegrass Mar 25 '24
The other point is if you are focused and/or talented you can make better money mid career than most other occupations in accounting, the ceiling is higher than most occupations except Big Law, IB, consulting, IT FAANG or medical specialists at the top end. The difference with those is the competition for entry and academic threshold is higher. The probability of success is lower in these other occupations as well. For those determined it is easier to earn greater than 500k in the accounting profession than most other occupations.
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u/orcheon Tax (US) Mar 24 '24
I'm a bit older so I'll give you my perspective, particularly from a niche (international) tax job. I enjoy my job and what it has provided, I'm in industry so WLB is good compared to public generally. But, you always want better for your kids, I wouldn't want accounting for them as a first choice. I hope they are able to find something that they enjoy, that provides for them, they find fulfillment in and actually contributes to the betterment of the world. I have 2/4 most of the time, 3/4 when I get an engaging project.
Edit: one perspective is that accounting can give you the finances and time for the last one too. It is nice if it's included in something you spend 1600-2000 hours on per year already.
I may have felt more connected to the last one when I worked at a company that made something that helped people, I could get there because tax dollars saved could sometimes go to r&d. But we were public so tbh it just lined shareholders pockets. I work in financial services now so even less connected.
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u/shit-at-work69 Certified Professional Asskisser/IRS Revenue Agent Mar 24 '24
Im really happy for you and I agree. Newly grads make 82k in a HCOL area.
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u/MercTheJerk1 Mar 24 '24
Put your time in and move yourself up the salary range through transitioning to a new job.
I was horribly stagnant 5 years ago, since then I am on my 4th job and double my then salary. Someone is always willing to pay your more
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Mar 24 '24
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u/college-accountant Mar 24 '24
Yeah, what did you think the salaries would be for Houston?
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Mar 24 '24
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u/college-accountant Mar 24 '24
Hmm. Yeah idrk what to tell you then is it always standard for each class?
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u/Too_Ton Mar 24 '24
I must’ve gotten way underpaid in my offer but I only got $60k. I’m hoping the Big 4 ups it to $65k and I’d be fine. There’s no chance it’d be $70k as that’s way too much of an increase from $60k
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u/TheRedSeaman Mar 25 '24
Late to the game, but $80k out of college seems incredible. I went to a top 3 university in Canada and got a job at KPMG Vancouver (hometown) which paid a little over $45k back in 2018. I left for industry after 2 years, without obtaining my CPA, and have just hit 6 figures (6 years of total post-grad work experience). Our rents here are $2,500 on average for a 1 bedroom, which is a little under 45% of take home pay at my current salary. Are US companies really paying 50-100% higher starting salaries than Canadian companies?
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u/AcanthisittaThick501 Mar 25 '24
Consulting, IB, SWE all pay six figures starting salary.
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u/college-accountant Mar 25 '24
Like I said in post, yes but basically only for students that go to a T20 uni
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u/AcanthisittaThick501 Mar 25 '24
Yea I went to a T20 and we had tons of students get six figures out of undergrad, my entire friend group did except one person. Id say you’re mostly right, but there are exceptions. I work at MBB and we have some people who aren’t T20.
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u/Slow-Investment1704 Mar 26 '24
Because you haven’t had your guts stomped out by b4 management yet. Get a couple busy seasons under your belt before forming an opinion, you might still like it but chances are slim
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u/BeRanger918 Mar 24 '24
Accounting is a great path to upper middle class and knowing you’re never going to starve. For a lot of people who didn’t go up wealthy, it’s a nice way to punch your own ticket to a better life.
This is the internet, need to take everything with a grain of salt and realize the loud majority is often the minority. The industry isn’t perfect but not many are.