Summer is over!
Basically.
I know, you’re sad. But it’s time to get excited!
This could be the semester where you land an internship with a major accounting firm.
Or maybe even a full-time offer. Then you’ll be able to relax while finishing your degree and they would pay for all your CPA review products! Imagine.
So what’s the #1 thing you need to do this Fall to ensure it happens?
HAVE A PLAN!
Here’s the 3 step plan I would use if I went to The University of South Florida (USF) in Tampa.
(Note: I was never enrolled in this University but this is where I actually snuck in and got my Summer Leadership Adventure with PwC in 2009).
1. Beta Alpha Psi
Check to see if the University you are attending has a Beta Alpha Psi Chapter. You can see the full listing of chapters here. At USF, they happen to have one and it has a website.
I would scroll through the website and see if you can find the President.
It was pretty easy here:
Go ahead and send him an email.
Something like this:
Hi Joseph,
My name is Andrew and I’m a Junior accounting major at USF. I’m very interested in getting more involved with Beta Alpha Psi this semester and would love to know when the first event or interest meeting will be this Fall.
I want to make sure I don’t miss out. You can reach me at (813) 456-3334.
Talk soon!
Best regards,
Andrew Argue
Is this going to directly land you a job? No. But Beta Alpha Psi Chapters have TONS of events every semester usually with accounting firms. You want to get involved if you haven’t already.
2. Career Fair
I did a simply search for “University of South Florida Career Services” and found this page:
This is a good start, but what I really want to see if a full listing of all the employers that will be attending the event.
Most Universities release this a few weeks before the event.
I couldn’t find it, but I would be checking every few days between now and mid-September.
Once I get this list. The real fun begins.
I would make a list like this:
Firms at the Career Fair:
- PwC
- EY
- Deloitte
- KPMG
- BDO
- Grant Thornton
- Other local firm 1
- Other local firm 2
- Other local firm 3
- Other local firm 4
- And so on….
Plan: Attend the career fair and meet with every firm. Prepare an elevator speech and resume. Obtain business cards for everyone I meet and follow up via email in 24 hours. Apply online for every firm that requires it.
Firms not at the career fair but in my city:
Note: A great way to research this is you state CPA society. Most have a database of CPA firms buy county.
Here is the database for the Florida Institute of CPA’s.
I know this University is near Hillsborough County which yields 37 results:
I would scroll through and make a list of the firms that interest me, but are not going to be at the career fair.
Let’s just say I found:
- Clifton Larson Allen
- Marcum LLP
- A-Lign CPA’s
- Other local firm 1
- Other local firm 2
- Other local firm 3
- Etc.
Then I’ll research them on LinkedIn and reach out.
3. Research Firms on LinkedIn
Try to perform this research for free first.
But if you can’t find the right contacts, I want you to go to LinkedIn and look into signing up for a premium account. If you’re already on LinkedIn, you most likely have already received an invitation from LinkedIn for a free 1 month trial. If so, use it. Sign up for the “Recruiter Lite” account which is approximately $99/mo.
With this “free trial” version, you are going to research who the HR Manager or recruiter for all companies not at the career fair.
(Note: DO NOT request to connect with them unless you actually know them. While we young people don’t care, some of the older generation will offended and/or freaked out).
So here is an example of how I found the Deloitte Campus Recruiter in Atlanta:
Step 1: Search City on LinkedIn
Step 2: Search City on LinkedIn
Step 3: Search for the “Human Resource” Function
Step 4: Find someone with the right title
Boom, right on the first page, campus recruiter from Deloitte! Yes, that’s “Jill” (real name blurred, but this is an actual Deloitte recruiter)
Step 5: Get or guess the email
Now comes the tricky part. She didn’t have her email on her LinkedIn, and I don’t want to connect with her, because, I don’t actually know her…
So….
I turn to google to find out how Deloitte structures their emails…
On the second page, I found what I needed!
While I’ve blurred out this person’s name, I can now tell that Deloitte uses the first letter of the first name, and the last name (even though you can’t see that). Now I can structure two potential emails for my target, “Jill Argue Richardson”.
I’m guessing she is married because she has two last names which is making this tricky for us. Since I blurred out her name, let’s image her LinkedIn name was Jill Argue Richardson. Here would be my best guesses:
jargue@deloitte.com or jrichardson@deloitte.com
I would send an email containing both of those emails. Then, if I received errors messages, I might try other combinations like jarichardson@deloitte.com. But you get the point. All the information you need to find the recruiters at your top firms is RIGHT AT YOUR FINGERTIPS!
Prepare an Email, Resume, and Cover Letter
I’m going to be very generous here and give you the exact word to use in the email:
Subject: Appropriate Person
Hello [FIRST NAME],
I’m writing in hopes of finding the appropriate person who handles campus recruiting? I also wrote to Other Contact 1 and Other Contact 2 in that pursuit. If it makes sense to talk, does how your calendar look?
I am currently a student from [INSERT NAME] and will be graduating in [INSERT GRAD MONTH AND YEAR]. I have attached my resume and cover letter for your to review. I am eager to discuss the opportunities with [INSERT COMPANY NAME]. I took a look at your website and am specifically interested in learning more about [INSERT ONE THING YOU RESEARCH]
If you are the appropriate person to speak with, what does your calendar look like?
If not, who do you recommend I talk to?
Best regards,
[INSERT FIRST & LAST NAME]
Mobile: [INSERT NUMBER]
Email: [INSERT EMAIL]
[Attach Cover Letter & Resume in separate PDFs]
These three steps ensure you will be meeting 20-30 accounting firms this Fall!
That doesn’t mean you’ll actually get hired.
For that, I would consider:
But #1 thing most people don’t do is have a comprehensive PLAN.
It sounds simple, but I get emails from people in late November – What can I do to find a job?
At that point, it is much much harder!
If there is anything I can do to help you in your job search this Fall, don’t hesitate to email me: andrew@thebeancounter.com.
Follow Us!