u/Environmental-Quail6

▲ 10 r/Big4+1 crossposts

I realized I don’t need a MAcc but now I have a full year before starting in Big 4. What am I supposed to do?

I’m an accounting major graduating next year and will be doing a Big 4 audit internship next summer. Originally, I told them I planned to do a MAcc afterward since I’m graduating in 3 years and I need more credits to reach the 150.

After reading a lot of discussions here and talking to professionals, I’ve reconsidered whether the MAcc is actually worth it. I realized I can meet the 150-hour requirement far cheaper through other means.

I asked the Big 4 firm whether not doing the MAcc would allow me to move my expected full-time start, but they said no. So now I likely have about a year between graduation and my Big 4 full-time start date.

This semester I’m also interning at a mid-tier firm. One option I’ve considered is accepting a full-time offer there for that year, which would:

  1. Give me real audit experience,

  2. Access to Becker a year earlier for the CPA

The downside is that I would likely leave after a year to join the Big 4 firm I already interned with.

Is taking the mid-tier firm full-time offer for a year a bad idea?

Should I instead focus entirely on passing the CPA?

Or is there a better way to use that year?

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u/Environmental-Quail6 — 3 days ago