My name is Daniel and I am currently undeclared in my engineering school, but I am in the process of changing my major to Business Administration. The reason I want to change is because I am tired of getting C’s in engineering courses and being happy about it since they are challenging (I did try my best in every course I took, but it sometimes was not good enough).

Additionally, I cannot see myself being an engineer for the rest of my life. I will fulfill all the requirements by Winter 2016 and will be eligible for the Business Program in Spring 2016. I plan on concentrating in either accounting, finance, or marketing, but I am leaning more towards accounting. Some business courses that I have taken so far was an introduction course:

• Provides an overview of the field of business administration. Explores business goals and strategies, functional areas of business and their integration in policy and decision making, social responsibility, computers in business, and business trends and challenges including the international dimension. 

And financial accounting and reporting course:

• A study of the concepts and techniques for measurement and communication of financial information. Includes interpretation of financial statements. 

I want to get an internship for Summer 2016, but I have a couple questions and concerns about obtaining an internship next summer. 

I feel discouraged to apply for an internship because:

1. My GPA is at a 2.7
2. I do not have have a strong accounting background, and
3. I do not start taking upper division business/accounting courses until Winter 2016.

I know GPA is not everything, but I personally feel like an employer will not consider me because my GPA is below at 3.0. Furthermore, my lack of accounting knowledge will not make me a strong candidate. I want to wait until the 2016-2017 academic school year to get an internship, but I feel like it will be too late if I graduate in June 2017 (I might have to be a fifth year since I am changing my major late into my undergraduate career). 

I was wondering if you can guide me on the steps of acquiring an internship. I have no idea where to start and what to do. I looked into two internships that I might apply for Summer 2016. One is the BOLD program at Google and the other one is an Auditor at PwC. Additionally, the Career Center at my school told me about some career/internship fairs that will be happening this Fall. If you have anything tips and tricks that will help me out due to my current situation will help a lot. Thank you so much in advance for the assistance.

Sincerely,

Daniel

Having a sub 3.0 GPA can be terrible.

GPA isn’t everything, but below the three level employers start to get nervous.

In this situation, you need to get the GPA up regardless of the decision.

Unless you have some amazing personal story of starting a business or something like that, I don’t think Google is realistic. With PwC, you also need a higher GPA (3.23 got in me but that was on the very low side).

Also, if you are going into accounting, you need to get a CPA license which requires 150 credit hours.

Here’s something to consider:

Complete whatever degree is the fastest now and take as many accounting courses as electives as you can. Then enter a Masters of Accounting (your GPA will reset).

Once you get a good GPA after a semester in the Masters program (hopefully 3.5 or higher), you can beat the streets for a full-time job.

Internships are great, but it will be tough to land one with a terrible GPA and not even having a declared accounting major.

A good friend of mine had a 2.8 in undergrad and a 3.6 in his Masters program.

He now works at Ernst & Young.

For some people, it’s best to just finish the degree and be glad things reset in the Masters degree.

The post I Want to Switch my Major to Accounting. But my GPA is Ruined. appeared first on The Bean Counter.

Hey Andrew,

I came across your post/ site and wanted to thank you for the inspirational story. I’ve been paying interest only on my $60k loans since graduation and am ready to be more aggressive. 

From your post, it seems like you saved extra monthly income in order to make a large payment over putting extra income toward your loans each month in small increments. Did you see better results this way?

My current plan is to begin tracking my money and set a low budget, save up toward a 3-month emergency fund, then begin saving all extra income toward loans until I can make a large payment. I plan to attack loans in order of interest rate.

Do you have any other suggestions?

Thanks again – appreciate anything else you can share.

Jeremy 

I was so excited to see this question.

I have received so many emails about my debt story, but I know this feeling.

Once you look yourself in the mirror and say, “let’s get this thing in gear!”.

Questions come up. Lots of questions.

How much should I be spending on food?

Should I save for retirement or pause?

Which loans should I pay off first?

How big should my emergency fund be?

And many more.

So let’s get into the questions Jeremy asked above:

Should you save extra each month, or save up big chunks to throw at your debt?

I through big chunks at the debt, but I wouldn’t always recommend that.

If you have a stable job, with no plans to leave, and little to no chance of being fired, I would pay the monthly amounts.

The 14 month period where I realized I needed to save and pay down debt, I had no job.

I had by businesses I had started and a little bit of contract accounting work.

I was scared to throw all my money at the debt until I had a very comfortable nest egg that could last me through the ups and downs of entrepreneurship.

So as a general rule:

Stable income: pay monthly

Unstable income: stockpile until you can throw big chunks

Should I attack the loans in order of interest rate?

Generally now.

I would try to have a plan to pay off your debt in less than 2 years.

At the maximum, you will probably only save a few hundred dollars by doing that.

But I think more important than the few hundred bucks is your confidence.

My wife and I knocked out the smallest loans first:

$3,5K – BAM, gone

$5K – BAM, gone

$8K – BAM, see ya!

Many famous personal financial professionals call this the “Snowball Method”.

You pay off your debt smallest to largest. Why?

Because it builds confidence. You gain momentum as you see your bills closed and fewer payments made.

Any other suggestions?

Get an extra job, or three. Never give up.

You may be a successful accountant, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be an Uber driver on Saturday and Sunday.

Ya, your friends might make fun of you.

But guess what? They’re probably broke.

Find out what you can do in your free time to earn a little cash. Throw 100% of that money at your debt and you will finish much faster.

The post Should You Pay Off Student Loans Each Month Or Save Big Chunks? appeared first on The Bean Counter.

Here is the #1 worst mistake I’ve seen!

Should your resume be longer than one page?

Here is a discussion I jumped into in one of the best accounting student groups on LinkedIn.

Here was the question:

And here were the top responses I saw:

I’m not trying to hate on anyone but people…

If you’re an accounting student, 1-page is the MAX! It’s not an opinion of mine, it’s consistent across every recruiter I’ve ever spoken to in accounting!

Other industries are different. I know a guy in college who was applying to work at a University as a building manager and 3-page resumes are typical. But that doesn’t really matter to me.

Accounting should be 1-page, they’re expecting it. This is exactly what they want to know:

• What was your overall GPA?
• What’s your accounting GPA?
• Did you work during school? Was any of it accounting work?
• Do you plan to take the CPA exam?
• Were you involved in leadership activities (like Beta Alpha Psi)?

The post #1 Worst Accounting Resume Mistake I See This Year appeared first on The Bean Counter.

For me the answer was simple, and here’s why.

Logic, evidence, reason = Audit

Rules, legislations, research = Tax

Things need to make sense in my brain. I don’t find opinions interesting unless they make sense. Weird answer huh? It honestly had nothing to do with seeing clients more, working in teams, or future career paths.

But there is a lot to consider. This question is HUGELY important in the recruiting process.

APPLY: Regardless of Audit or Tax, you NEED to Apply for the CPA Exam.

The more things you know (where you want to work, when you want to start, audit/tax), the more likely you are to get hired. Firms like someone who knows what they want, has a plan, and is fully prepared.

Don’t be fooled by thinking: “Oh, if I say audit or tax I will increase my chances as they will consider me for twice the positions.” WRONG.

Audit Pros:

• You tend to work in teams.
• There are a LOT more audit positions than tax. In recent years the audit industry has grown. Internal audit, IT Audit, and new PCAOB regulations have greatly increased the number of positions available.
• With audit you’ll have limitless exit opportunities in various industries and for different types of positions in the accounting world (CFO, Valuation, Controller, IT Audit, Financial Accounting positions, Finance, etc.).
• You see the full picture of the business. In many cases, you are responsible for parts of the tax work as well as the financial statement audit.

Audit Cons:

• People will ALWAYS ask you, can you do my taxes? You can’t.
• Audit gives you the chance to be yelled at by the client starting day one!
• Being an auditor requires being skeptical and being independent. This can often times be a problem for people who want to “help” the client, or be on their team like a consultant. At the end of the day your goal is to minimize audit risk (the risk of a bad opinion).
• Tend to be quite a bit of travel involved and you almost always have to be at the client sites. While many see this as a pro, over time less people love the travel (though the hotel points are nice).

Tax Pros:

• They tend to pay a bit better for tax since it’s more specialized
• If you really wish to open up your own firm, tax could be for you. Many small firms are focused on bookkeeping and taxes first! Audits tend to come as you grow.
• Food. The tax team almost always gets the best food catered to the office during busy season.
• Dual, tri, and quad monitors! As you’re always in the office, you typically get the best computer setup.

Tax Cons:

• In some cases may take you a year before you even meet a client.
• There is less teamwork in tax preparation. You are on your own much more than with audits.
• Many (large) firms require a Masters in Taxation.
• There are fewer positions available at larger firms than audit.

While you want to try and make the best decision for yourself, you can alway change. I’ve seen countless people start at small and large firms in one department and move to the other.

The truth is, it’s a guessing game. You will not know until you get in the game.

Do you best but don’t say, “I want to do both” or “I would do either”.

If that’s true, pick one for now, and if you hate it, switch once you’ve accepted your offer and you’re at the firm!

Have another audit or tax pro/con? Let me know in the comments!

The post Public Accounting: Audit or Tax? Here Are The Pros & Cons! appeared first on The Bean Counter.

It’s changed a lot over the years.

You can find that out by talking to any CPA in their 50’s.

They’ll go on an on about the olden days where Butch Cassidy and the sundance kid failed the exam, and you had to take all four sections in one day.

There used to be arcane rules like:

If you score below 50% on any one of the four exams, the other exams that you passed don’t count and you must retake them all.

Seriously.

If you scored:

• AUD 75
• FAR 75
• REG 75
• BEC 49

You failed and have to re-take them all….

If they re-institute that score, there may be an uprising worse than Hunger Games Catching Fire.

Luckily, the 2017 CPA exam changes are much tamer than that.

(excerpts from Roger CPA Review on 2017 CPA Exam Changes)

In fact, the only real section change that scares me is BEC.

It’s going from 85% multiple choice to 50%.

That used to be an easy section, now I’m not so sure.

In good news, in 2018, the current generic spreadsheets that candidates use to complete calculations will be replaced by Excel on the CPA Exam. The inclusion of Excel is due to profession’s input and the benefit to exam candidates because of the prevalence of excel use among newly licensed CPAs. This will also increase Exam Costs.

Actual excel!

There are other conceptual changes to the exam which if you are interested in learning about, I recommended you check out all the 2017 CPA exam changes.

The real question is, how do you prepare for this?

The best way is to stay informed and make sure you know which test you are taking and the exam dates when it changes.

TIMELINE THE NEXT CPA EXAM

• January 2014 – September 1, 2015 – Members of the following groups were interviewed, surveyed, invited to focus groups, and to comment. Information from this group was combined with the practice analysis.

  • Newly licensed CPAs
  • Direct and indirect supervisors of newly licensed CPAs
  • CPAs in business and industry
  • Academics
  • Standard setters
  • Regulators
  • Training directors
  • Boards of accountancy executive directors and members

• September 1, 2015 – Exposure Draft

  • The AICPA plans to distribute an exposure draft: a final proposal for the next version of the Exam for review by state boards of accountancy, standards setters, regulators, public accounting firms, academics, and state CPA societies.
  • The exposure draft is the final proposal for the next version of the CPA examination.
  • The exposure draft will be made available to the entire profession, with special distribution to the boards of accountancy, standard setters, regulators, public accounting firms, academics, and state CPA societies.
  • The exposure draft contains blueprints, structure, design, and administration of the next CPA Exam.
  • Comments from this final round of external review will be used to finish the design of the next version of the CPA examination before its announcement in 2016.

• September 1 – November 30, 2015 – Exposure Draft – Comments Period.

• Q2 2016 – Public Announcement – Next version of the CPA Exam will be announced.

• Q2 2017 – New version of the CPA Exam launched.

• 2018 – AICPA Proprietary Test Drive Launched (A new testing interface utilizing Excel, audio, and video to be launched in 2018).

Roger CPA Review has done a terrific job of detailing out the changes to the 2017 exam and will be updating their CPA review course in advance to make sure you are fully prepared for the next section.

Stay up to date by signing up at the bottom of this page for CPA exam changes.

The post The Upcoming 2017 CPA Exam Changes: What You Need To Know appeared first on The Bean Counter.

Mueed shared an interesting comment which you need to understand this fall if you will be interviewing…

So are you saying, once you land the interview, you pass all these tests?:

-Your timing to start didn’t work for the firm
– The office you chose didn’t have a need
– You happened to have a bad interview with someone
– The culture wasn’t a fit at the time (maybe you’ve matured)
– You don’t have a good GPA
– You don’t have work experience
– You aren’t involved on campus
– You could also – just plain suck

Are you saying, once you land the interview, it’s all about how the interview goes?

In general: you didn’t connect with them. 

Solving this problem is a huge challenge and it’s different for all of us.

These are some of the questions you need to be asking yourself:

How do others perceive me?

How do others think of me?

If I were in their shoes, would I want me on the team?

Do I bring enthusiasm to the room?

Am I asking questions and curious about the firm and the people?

You need to empathize with the interview and the company to imagine:

Who would I want to hire?

And be that person.

The truth is that once you’ve made it to the interview stage, it is your job to lose.

It’s easy to join a new community service project, apply to another internship, or try to get out GPA up.

It’s hard to look yourself in the mirror and ask:

“Why am I not connecting?”

Sometimes this has to do with personality differences.

If you are naturally introverted, you shouldn’t expect to change your entire personality.

But you should be prepared to push yourself in ways you maybe haven’t before.

You may have to keep up a conversation for an hour with someone you don’t know.

If you are extroverted, you need to allow others to speak at dinner.

Talking over other people going for the same job can be a huge red flag for firms looking for someone that can handle the natural competition with co-workers in the workplace.

The point is: self-reflection and self-improvement is key.

It’s not that there is something fundamentally wrong with you. But what could be better?

P.S. I wrote this article earlier this week, people love it! Don’t miss it!

P.P.S. If you feel this article doesn’t apply to you, maybe you literally just need to prepare a bit more and know the questions they will ask. If that’s you, you must read this post with 28 interviews questions you are guaranteed to get!

The post The Truth About Why You Failed Your Accounting Interview appeared first on The Bean Counter.

Let’s face the facts together. The CPA Exam is a very difficult exam process to go through. The 2014 CPA Exam Pass rate statistics and learned that on average, the pass rate is just under 50% according to the AICPA. That means that when you go into Prometrics and sit down, as your computer begins to load and the first testlet appears, guess what, there is a 50% chance you’re going to fail this exam. There goes $250 bucks and a Facebook status.

Now on to the good news. Though 50% of people are failing the exam, that means that there are 50% of people who are actually passing it (Glass half full thought process). For me, I was able to pass all 4 parts within 7 months (including a big FAIL on my last exam section of AUD). Before, during, and after the exam process, I was able to gather key tips and tricks that nobody seems to be sharing. Therefore, I have compiled a list of 10 little-known facts about passing the CPA Exam to share with you today. Hopefully, these tips and tricks will be the extra boost you need to get you passing the CPA exam and onto becoming a true CPA.

1. Take Your Easiest Exam First

This is probably the opposite of the advice you have been given by your peers/co-workers. Most people think that you should take the hardest exam first, the one with the longest sections or the test that will be the trickiest. I disagree. Unfortunately, there is a significant amount of buildup that goes on in your head before you take the exam. From peer pressure, to questioning your own intelligence as you forget what “Gross Profit” means, you need to start off this exam process with some confidence. Therefore, by taking your easiest exam first, you will walk in with a little boost of self-confidence as you know you have studied all of the material for this section and are ready to knock it out. For me, BEC was my easiest exam section as I just came off of taking a finance and IT class and enjoyed learning about managerial accounting. Since I felt like I knew the material, the added pressures of “Oh Man, I’m about to take the CPA Exam”, did not completely overwhelm me and I was able to come out with an 85 on my first try.

2. Write Out an Exam Timing Schedule And Follow It

This is probably one of the most helpful pieces of advice I was given during my exam process. Write out a schedule of how long each testlet should be taking you, from the moment you started the exam to the end. Figure out exactly how far along you should be and make sure you keep on track. This is very helpful as you have to remember to leave time for your simulations at the end of your testlet.

Here is an example of scheduling your time during the exam:

AUD (4 Hours – 3 Testlets and 7 Simulations)

By listing out your time, you are able to get an idea of where you are at during each point of the exam. Lets say you are on hour 1:45 and you haven’t even finished Testet #2, you know that you need to start hurrying up if you want to give yourself time for those simulations. Practice writing out your schedule and perform a Mock final exam on your CPA review course and see if the schedule helps you finish your exam on time.

3. Getting A Review Course Is 100% Required

As you probably have heard, taking on the CPA Exam alone, without any study material, is pretty much like putting on a blindfold, being turned around a couple of times, and then handed a dart to attempt to throw onto the board. Chances are, you’re going to miss the mark, big time. Therefore, you want to make sure you do ample research on which CPA Review material you would like to take on. I recommend to every Bean Counter fan I work with to use Roger CPA Review. Roger has incredible charisma that will keep you engage until the very last section! Before I started the exam, I thought I could just use the CPA books I needed in class to help me pass the exam. Boy was wrong.

I was unable to retain the information needed to pass the exam from just reading a book and doing the same multiple choice questions. I needed additional audio and visual learning simulations to help me pass this thing. Even though I failed once, I was able to walk out of 7 months of studying with “Pass” on all 4 parts.

4. Don’t Tell Anyone You’re Taking The CPA Exam, Not Even Your Mom

I met a girl going through the CPA Exam process who decided it was a good idea to have a CPA exam study group where everyone got together and attempted to study. The idea sounded great until she spent most of her time gossiping with her friends and less time actually learning the material needed to pass. As they were all in a study group together, everyone knew when each other was taking their exams. Then, come exam score time, the entire group found out that she was the only one that did not pass her exam. She was crushed.

Unfortunately, when you begin to tell others you are taking the CPA exam, your friends and family will want to become “involved”. Find out when your taking the exam, what part, how many sections you have passed, etc. Therefore, if you are up to explaining why you canceled your CPA Exam section or why a 74 is not considered a passing grade, go ahead and let everyone know. But, if you would prefer not to add the additional pressure of everyone wanting to know if you passed or failed the exam, you do not need to divulge this information. Keep it to yourself. That way, if you decide your not ready to taking AUD next week, its ok, you can change your mind. If you failed FAR twice, nobody needs to know this and you can continue on trying to pass the exam. You can also wait to let everyone know you took the CPA Exam until you have passed all four parts and celebrate like this Facebook status:

5. Multiple Choice Questions Will Destroy You

If you decide to take on a CPA Review study course, mostly likely you will be sifting through tons of multiple choice questions, finding yourself just guessing on 60-70% of those questions. This tactic will NOT help you come exam time. Instead, focus on trying to learn the actual material and topics being taught. Each exam has simulations provided at the end of the test. These simulation questions are basically a summary of all of the topics you have learned throughout your CPA Exam section studying. Therefore, in your review course, make sure to tackle ALL the sample simulation questions as well as perform the mock final exams as provided. These two tasks will stimulate your brain to really think about what is being taught, instead of memorizing what the multiple choice questions are. By taking on the sample simulations, you are figuring out a new way to process this material and in turn, when a difficult multiple choice question arrives, you can utilize the skills you learned in the simulation to help you answer the multiple choice question correctly on your actual exam.

6. Figure Out If You Are a Morning, Day or Night Person

This advice will be extremely helpful to you when you are planning the times to take your CPA Exam. For me, I have always been a morning person. Therefore, I would plan to take the test at 8:00am, right after a fresh cup of coffee and ready to attack the exam. Some of my colleagues would take the exam around 5:30pm, right after a long day of work or school classes and would be exhausted by the time they took their exam. However, others wanted to take the exam in the daytime, after they got over their morning hangover, and fit in a few more chapters of material before taking the exam. Whatever time is best for you, that is when you need to schedule your exam. Period.

7. Schedule Your Test…Last Minute

Again, this is probably something that you have not yet heard and unfortunately, I didn’t figure out this trick until midway through. Most people think the best thing to do is schedule your test as far out as possible. This way it forces you to study because you know you have an exam coming up, whether you like it or not. I recommend the opposite. Things in life come up, out of nowhere and most people just go into the exam, have not finished the material, and come out with a 74 or less on the exam. Instead of going down this path, have an overall goal of when you plan to take the exam in your head first and then schedule the exam when you are actually ready to take it.

For example, let’s say I have the goal to take AUD by May 20th. However, on May 11, I realize that I’m freaking out because I have only completed chapter 3 of the 6 chapters and I am not ready to take this exam. Then decide ok, I will push back my exam date and actually schedule it for May 28th. That way I have an extra week and by that time, I know I will be ready. This advice goes back to my first tip where you want to try and avoid adding additional pressures to yourself before you take your exam. Again, this exam process is difficult. Take your time through it and realize that you are in more of control of your exam then you may think.

Note: This tip will only work if you live in an area that has multiple Prometric testing centers. If you only have one testing center near you, then its more likely that your time slots will get filled up. However, if they do get filled, most of the time people wind up canceling their exam 5 days out and slots will open back up. Just keep checking the availability in your area to make sure you get your desired time and date.

8. Reward Yourself For The Little Triumphs

Lets face it. The more time you spend studying for the CPA Exam, the less time you have for everything and everyone else in your life. Therefore, squeeze in some time to actually breath and have a little fun. Use this time as a reward for when you complete milestones in your study material or even pass a part of the CPA Exam. If you are planning on knocking out 3 sections of the study material for BEC this week and by Saturday you are finished with the material, take Sunday off. Don’t look or even think about your study material and go out and enjoy your day. This will help you stay motivated to take on the next chapter or the next exam. You can even plan bigger rewards for when you pass a section of the exam, like take a short weekend trip to the beach, etc. It’s completely up to you but make sure you’re not just completely miserable and look like this when you come out of the whole exam process:

9. You Can Fail An Entire Testlet And Still PASS!

I know, sounds crazy right? But remember, the AICPA includes questions on your CPA Exam that act as “throw out” questions just to see how people are doing on them. Therefore, throughout your exam, you will be provide with multiple choice and simulations that will not count against your score if you get them right or wrong. There are also questions on the exam that are so difficult, that no one is really expected to actually get them right. Therefore, when you add up the amount of “throw out” questions, plus the questions that you aren’t ever going to pass anyways, you come to approximately 30 questions. Therefore, if things are not going your way in that exam, stop, breath and remember that you can fail the next 15-30 questions and you still have a shot at passing this thing.

10. And Finally, Remember The Clock Is Ticking

Once you passed your first CPA Exam, remember that your clock has started to count down. You have 18 more months from the time you pass your first exam to finish the remaining 3 parts. I know 18 months sounds like a long time but guess what, it will come sooner than you think. You have to remember that you have off months throughout the year where nobody is taking the exam. For example, if you pass your first exam in Jan 1, 2015, you have from Jan 2, 2015 – June 30, 2016 to pass the remaining three parts with 6 of those months that are “Black Out” months.

I am sure by now you have heard plenty of horror stories surrounding this topic of losing a CPA exam section because of timing. Most people think that 18 months is a long time, they start working full time and by the end of those 18 months, they have only passed two parts and are trying to balance work with passing the remaining sections before their deadline is up. And, you DO NOT want to lose a section. That is probably the worst feeling knowing that you passed it already and yet you have to take it again. So for the last little-known fact, keep an eye on your timing and make sure you knock out those CPA exam sections faster than the 18 months can go by!

Got any questions for me? Feel free to reach out to andrew@thebeancounter.com. I would love to hear from you!

P.S. Looking for more on the CPA exam? Check out my recent webinar, “How to Pass the CPA Exam in 6 Months or Less!”

The post 10 Facts About Passing The CPA Exam appeared first on The Bean Counter.

Often times of disaster stories.

I help repair those disasters.

I decided that to try and help many of your prevent one of these disasters, I would put together a list of 22 reasons why you won’t find a job this fall.

Take this as a fair warning and a cheat sheet for what you need to do to get prepared!

1. Un-organized resume

A resumes that doesn’t touch on the key points recruiters care about means you are in for disasters.

Without a solid resume, you’ll never get an interview. And you’ll never get a job.

Get started by watching this short video where I critique and repair an accounting resume.

2. Didn’t research the company

One of the funniest stories I ever heard was from a Deloitte recruiter.

She said they got on the phone with a recruit and he said, “I have always wanted to work for “Delo-eet”. He completely mispronounced the name of the company right out of the gates.

Imagine if he did that to a client?

Obviously that put a significant mark against him.

Before the career fair and especially any interviews, make sure you check out the companies website and social media accounts.

3. Showed up in casual or business casual

Dress is tricky. When in doubt – ask.

Nowadays accounting firms hold all types of events for recruits.

Socials, leadership conferences, one-day summits, interviews, career, fairs, meet the firms, office visit, you name it!

If it doesn’t specifically state what the dress is, please – ASK!

4. Didn’t go to the career fair

I hear from people who just graduated and for all four or five years, they never attended a single career fair.

WHAT?!

That. Is. Madness.

I know it’s stressful and you are worried. But you have to face that fear.

If you don’t attend the career fairs starting at the very latest in Junior year, you are putting yourself at serious risk.

See my Guide to Career Fairs to ease your worries.

5. Lied in your interview

While you can normally get away with this, sometimes you can’t.

Lie about your GPA – they may ask for transcripts.

Lie about a job – they may ask for references.

Lie about an organization – they may have campus contacts who know you lied.

Lying is just too risky to even mess with. Keep it honest.

6. Low GPA with no reason

Heck, even I had a low GPA.

PwC said their minimum was 3.4 and I had a 3.23.

I got a summer leadership conference, internship, and full-time position.

Why?

I was working 3-4 jobs at any point in time, paying for my own education, and President of Beta Alpha Psi.

I was busy!

If you haven’t done anything, have no familial, personal, or health issues and have a low GPA…. you’re in trouble.

If you have a low GPA, make sure you have a reason.

Related:  I saw another student had a 3.99 GPA. Mine was 3.23, I thought it was over. I got the internship, he didn’t. 

7. Didn’t join Beta Alpha Psi

Unless it’s not on your campus, you need to join.

There are so many job opportunities by just being a member.

Becoming an officer basically guarantees your a job with one of the top firms.

There’s nothing else to say, just do it!

See active BAP Chapters.

8. Didn’t ask questions in the interview

At the end of the interview, the interviewer almost always asks, “Do you have any questions for me?”

If you don’t rattle off at a minimum 3, it’s a red flag.

This is your career!

Aren’t you curious about what you’ll be doing for the next 2-10-20-30 years!

I detail out some great questions in my interview eBook.

9. Lacked enthusiasm

I’ve talked about this before. I had a friend who I was told by the recruiter at PwC had an offer.

But in the very last interview… and the lunch after… people said he didn’t seem like he wanted to be there.

When I asked him what happened, he said, “I felt like I knew everything I needed to at that point. I felt like it was a done deal so I just relaxed”.

He didn’t get the job.

You have to be pumped until the last second if you want to ensure you get that final offer!

10. Talked poorly about others

Many times the recruiters and employees at the company know people all across the industry.

They know people at other firms.

People on campus.

And people in the same city.

If you say, “Oh man, Jimmy Williams is so annoying, I can’t stand him”.

Well maybe someone there is friends with Jimmy.

Or maybe dating him… Ya, I’ve seen that happen.

Save your hatred for others for your anonymous twitter account, this is not the right time.

11. Only applied to 5 companies

Even if you have the very best plan in your job search, 5 companies just isn’t enough.

In my course, “How To Find Any Accounting Job in 3 Months or Less“, I recommend at least 15 but I prefer 25 companies.

It’s a numbers game and you need to make the numbers work in your favor.

12.Rude to your professors

Right or wrong, at many University professors have a lot of say in hiring.

Often times, professors are some of the best contacts for recruiters to get the inside scoop on people’s attitudes, how they work in groups, and whether they would be a good addition to the firm.

The firms literally pick up the phone and call to get information on an individual.

If they called about you, what would they hear?

13. Didn’t send follow up emails

After you meet someone at a career fair or other recruiting event, follow up.

Ask for their business card and send a brief email.

Something like this:

Brian,

Good morning!

It was great meeting you last night at the bowling social. I appreciate you sharing more about your experience working for different hospitals across the state.

I hope we can stay in touch and I look forward to seeing you again at the career fair.

Best regards,

Andrew Argue

14. Didn’t smile in the phone interview

Phone interviews are tough.

How can you show you are excited and enthusiastic if they can’t see you?

I share a little secret and more in this short video.

Hint: Smile while you’re on the phone.

15. Weren’t clear on your office preference

Recruiters like people who have a plan.

They like people that know where they want to work.

Surprisingly, one of the worst things you can say is, “I’ll work anywhere”.

They’ve been burned too many times. They send you to South Dakota and you’re miserable.

They actually prefer that you have 1-2 cities where you want to work.

If you’ve made the choice, you are much more likely to be there for years, and they like that.

16. Aren’t clear on audit or tax

You better get clear quick.

Even if you don’t know, it’s best to pick one.

Especially for the larger accounting firms.

Luckily, I’ve got this article to get you going…

How to pick audit or tax?

17. Don’t have a plan to become a CPA

Almost all accounting firms and private companies want to see you moving towards a CPA license.

You don’t have to have a CPA before you start, but you have to have a plan and complete your 150 credit hours.

Nothing is worse then the recruiter asking, “When will you complete your 150 credit hours?”

Then you say, “150 credit hours for what?”.

Learn more about the CPA Exam Requirements here.

18. Didn’t make a cover letter when asked

If a cover letter is required, you have to do it.

Now that I think of it, if anything is required, you have to do it!

It should be that easy, but sometimes ya’ll forget!

19. Didn’t practice with Mock Interviews

Preparing for an interview is the only way to make it successful.

There are no classes on interviewing in high school or college.

If you don’t seek out the experience of practicing for an interview, where will you find it?

You can grab a friend, roommate, or family member and give them these 28 accounting interview questions.

Then do it again.

And then again.

I tell people to do at least 3 mock interviews before their first serious interview.

Oh, by the way – mock interviews with actual accounting firms aren’t “mock”, they are real and you need to be prepared before that!

20. Resume is 2 pages long

This is unacceptable. Period.

I have covered this so many times and been publicly backed up by dozens of recruiters.

Your resume should not be longer than 1-page.

21. Only spoke to Partners and ignored first years

Yes, Partners run the firm.

But during the recruiting process, they take input from everyone.

If one person, even an intern mentions they had a bad experience with someone, it can take even the best person right off the list.

When you are attending career fairs or other firm events, treat the staff, interns, and HR with the same respect you give to the partners and you’ll have nothing to worry about!

22. Used fouled language

I was a greeter at a PwC interview once I had been working there for a while.

One candidate walked out of the interview room and said to me (in front of HR):

“Hey, you look like that guy fro Step Brothers. Ya, that asshole guy.”

After that moment, he was gone.

Do you have any other reasons why you weren’t hired in the past?

I’d love to know in the comments below!

The post 22 Reasons You Won’t Find An Accounting Job This Fall appeared first on The Bean Counter.

Hi Andrew,

I’d really love to see some articles about interpersonal work relationships and generational differences.

My stint in public accounting ended because of crap coworkers.  I wish I would have had the resources to cope/deal with them.  I had encountered bullies, people taking credit for my work, peer pressure, gossip, you name it.  I didn’t want to deal with it, so I left.  Went right into the same thing at my next job.  A brilliant coworker of mine said every job is the same sh*t, different smell.

I need to develop the tools and resilience necessary to “rise above” or whatever else is recommended.

Thanks,

Amber

The truth is… public accounting is hard.

I felt so overwhelmed the first week of my PwC internship.

You have to dress up.

Work in an office.

Appear smart and prepared (when you have no idea what you’re doing).

And what happens on top of that?

Some people are just plain mean.

You could have a fellow co-worker that’s jealous.

Someone that’s more senior than you that doesn’t like you.

Maybe they’ve given up on their career and they can’t stand you still have the bright light many interns or first years have.

My biggest piece of advice to anyone entering the profession:

Never, and I mean NEVER let your enthusiasm die! No matter how many things you have to change or jobs you have to quit.

There is nothing more important to the next 30+ years of your professional life than your be excited, happy, and find purpose and meaning in what you do!

The truth is, everyone has bad bosses.

People that require you to work as much as they do – even if you’re more efficient.

People that force you to say you worked 9 hours when you worked 13.

People that leave 52 review notes on a single word document (ya, it happened).

In the first few years, you tend to have these terrible bosses because the best people have already been promoted to work on higher level issues!

Here is the secret I used to overcome this:

It’s okay to say:

“This person has been here longer than me and they have seniority over me. But they are a terrible manager, miserable person, and hurting the company:

It’s probably true.

But I wouldn’t go shouting that down the halls.

This is for you to know and tell yourself.

Then you bust your a$$ for them.

Don’t give them any objective evidence that you…

Showed up late.

Don’t know as much as you should based on trainings.

Missed a client deadline.

Aren’t prepared for meetings.

Don’t give them anything to show that you aren’t rock solid.

Then after a few weeks, speak with your coach.

Say something like this:

While I feel I’ve learned quite a bit while working on ABC client, I’m not sure it’s the best team fit for me. I think for some people, this could be the perfect environment, right people, and right client.

But I’m not so sure that’s the case for me.

I’ve worked hard and I think I’ve done a great job. I expect to see that in my review.

But I can’t say that I’ve personally enjoyed it.

And that’s surprsing for me.

I really enjoyed XYZ and MNA client. And I really enjoying working here. I am incredibly greatful for the opportunity.

But I know that if I spend another few months on this job, I won’t be happy. And I don’t want that.

I plan on working here for many years, but I can see how I’ve started to feel in just a few short months.

What would you recommend I do?

In public accounting, things don’t change overnight. Especially when it’s your first year.

The truth is, you need to be a little patient, a little political, and don’t let anyone have objective reasons to doubt you are an incredible asset to the company.

The next week, pop-in and have the same conversation with HR. Then maybe a Partner your close with.

People can’t help you if they don’t know what’s going on.

The best way to deal with these situation is to:

Talk with the right people, behind closed doors, in a consistent and patient way until you get what you want. Then show tremendous gratitude!

By taking these steps you showing:

You are the mature one.

Yo haven’t given up on your career.

You are looking out for you and the company.

If you keep handling conflicts this way, you’ll rise quickly in the organization and leave the terrible bosses in the dust to whine, cry, and be miserable for the next 30 years!

The post How Millennial Accountants Should Deal With Crap Co-Workers appeared first on The Bean Counter.

How to Dress at Accounting Career Fairs

Males Wear a suit and tie. Make sure the suit fits and my personal recommendation on the tie, is a Windsor knot (check out the video below). I’d also recommend not dressing like the next Gordon Gecko (if you don’t know the reference, Google it and watch the movie, not the one with Shia Lebouf). Basically, nothing too flashy. Also, don’t wear a backpack! It is tacky and makes you look like you are back in high school. [fve]http://youtu.be/ZQQr09Ja1zY[/fve]

How to Prepare

Research Most career fairs at universities have a website where you can find the companies that are attending. This is a REQUIREMENT if you’re going to the career fair. You need to make sure you’re prioritizing the firms you want to see before you arrive. Many companies will have a 30-40-80 person line, and if that’s your top choice, you don’t want to show up in the last hour. You also need to check out the website of the company you’re looking for. Look for them in media publications such as goingconcern.com (above). Find out what charities they’re involved in, major clients they serve in your area, and what type of programs they offer for someone like you (training, tours in other countries, summer leadership programs, etc). This can make great conversation starters if there is something you’re curious about and will show you did your research.

Clothing Make sure your clothes are ironed and ready the day before. You can’t get dry cleaning done the same day as the career fair, most places close around 6:00 pm. If you’re worried about your look, ask a couple of friends or even send us a picture at Andrew@thebeancounter.org. You don’t want to walk in with something that doesn’t fit, is outdated, sloppy, and doesn’t match.

Buy on Amazon

Be sure it’s polished before you show up. Try and print on some special paper to make it stand out a little bit. There should be no spelling errors and it should be consistent all the way through. Print 50 copies of your resume before you attend and make sure the paper is unique. See the amazon link to the right where you can buy weighted paper to give your resume that extra pop. There are so many things to consider on your resume and look out for future resume podcasts. If you’d like to check out our resume services, head to our Resume webpage.

Detailed Portfolio No need for the career fair as you won’t have enough time to go through it. Let’s save it for the interview!

Cover Letter Consider it if a specific company required it, however, that is very rare for a career fair.  Save the cover letter for online resume submissions and just go for the one-page resume. If you would like more information regarding cover letter services, check out our Cover Letter web page.

Business Cards Business cards will only make you more of what you already are. If you’re disorganized, poorly dressed, poorly presented, and your picture is on the business card, that thing will be scanned and sent to the whole office before you get to bed. However, if you’re clean, polished, fresh, it can really help you stand out.

Elevator Speech You need to make sure that when you walk into the career fair, and you make eye contact with that first person, you’re ready to smile, and calmly and confidently walk up to them and start chatting: “Hi, how are you? I’m happy to meet you as I wanted to make sure I talk to as many people as I can from “X company”. I was checking out your website and saw that you are one of the companies that offers summer leadership adventures and want to talk to someone about what the experience is like, and what I need to do to apply?” If you’d like to check out our elevator speech coaching, Head to our Coaching  webpage. Then, they may ask for your resume and you’ll exchange pleasantries. Maybe they are a school alumni and you lived in the same dorm, were part of the same fraternity, or had a common professor. Be calm, playful, make eye contact and as I always say, be Enthusiastic, Curious, and don’t be Weird!

Looking for more?

Check out Get Hired By Big 4 Accounting Firms with a podcast and eBook for the career fair! We also have a 5 part interview series, interviews with recruiters who share exactly what you need to know, and 5 resume templates which you can use that I have handcrafted and are proven to work!

The post Comprehensive Guide to Accounting Career Fairs appeared first on The Bean Counter.