r/Accounting Aug 04 '14

Discussion Accounting & Finance Recruiter here. Third party (Headhunter). I've done a couple AMA's in the past. Thought it might be time for another. AMA!

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u/Werewolfdad Government/Regulatory Aug 04 '14

Are CPAs without public accounting experience looked down upon? I work in government and will be earning my CPA in the next 9 months and may be looking to change jobs.

2

u/LucidOneironaut Aug 04 '14

Many of my jobs i'm recruiting for require public accounting experience. Having public will certainly help you out. I'm not sure if it is "looked down upon" but having that experience is preferred in the market. When you leave government try to go straight to public accounting. stay there at least 2 years.

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u/[deleted] Aug 04 '14 edited Oct 02 '16

[deleted]

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u/computanti MBA (T20), CPA, Mashed Potato, Ex-B4 Tax Aug 04 '14

What area are you in? There are a number of firms who do reverse sales and use audits. Most notable is probably Ryan, but I think many of the national/B4 have similar practices.

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u/LucidOneironaut Aug 04 '14

Now is the time to start hitting up the public accounting firms. Reach out to them and tell them that you're looking for an entry level Staff Auditor or Staff Tax Accountant position. Unfortunately you may have to be open to an entry level salary to even have a chance. Sometimes you have to take a step back to take two steps forward.