Not sure what to do.

[jayhog]

Hi guys,

I'm new here so please be gentle.


I need some advice career wise.


I'm an accounting student who is getting ready to start applying for jobs. I have read about there being lots of traveling. I thought I had researched the career well but obviously I missed that. For example there's an interactive tool on KPMG's graduate site and most of the time when I put that I was very unsuited to being away for the week I always came up as not compatible.

I can afford to travel for work every now and then I could not make it a regular thing for family reasons. I also cannot leave this city due to family issues again.


So any career that regularly has me traveling and staying in hotels or that requires me to do multiple placements across the country many three years will not be suited.

I've really enjoyed my accountancy degree and want to use it. From what I've understood Audit requires extensive travel.

So which branch of accountancy would allow me to work at the main office pretty much every day? If any. I live very close to Manchester and Liverpool so lots of head offices of big accounting firms. I'm just struggling to find a graduate role that suits my lifestyle.

Would tax be something that keeps me at the main office every day?

Applying for graduate roles is hard with these criteria. I am on track for a first and have 340 UCAS points but so many jobs I'm looking at need me to be 1) Willing to relocate or be 'flexible' 2) Willing to travel a lot and be away 3) Willing to do multiple placements across the country.

I mean I can't be the only person who has a life that's not suited to that?

So any advice on how I can use the accounting skills I've built up over the years and stay close to my family?

I'd really appreciate any help with this. Looking at jobs and constantly seeing I couldn't do them because of location issues is really demotivating me. Not what I need midway through my last year.

 

[ColinCPA]

Jobs in tax tend to require very little travel, as opposed to audit. I also find the field to be far more rewarding than audit, but that's me.

If you want to stick in the audit field, maybe a job in corporate internal audit could be for you, if your job is focused on controls at the corporate office and not at site locations.

Or focus on employment at smaller CPA firms. Most, if not all travel at these firms is locally based no matter what the engagement.

 

[jayhog]

Thanks a lot for getting back to me Colin.

I don't actually have a preference for audit. I'm fairly certain I will apply for tax now. Very little travel is what suits me best. It honestly wouldn't matter if I preferred audit because no matter how much I liked the field, having to travel and be away from my family would instantly make me dislike the work,

Not many firms talk about location issues on their sites and I was reluctant to contact them as the first impression would be of someone 'fussy.' I just wanted to be sure tax wouldn't involve much traveling even if I worked for someone other than kpmg.

Working at the same office everyday as a tax accountant doesn't sound so bad!

 

[ColinCPA]

Working at the same office doesn't necessarily mean you'll be doing the same things over and over either. I find, for instance, that at the smaller firms (mine included), the variety of work increases versus E&Y, KPMG, etc. I do, however, wish a lot of the time that I would get a stab at looking at more complex tax issues that would apply at Fortune 500 clients. For instance, you aren't likely to see much work in the vein of FIN 48, deferred taxes, multi-state sales tax issues, etc. at smaller firms, but at Big 4, this might be ALL you do at one client all year. Personally, I like variety over complexity.

Keep in mind though that even if you might not be travelling, you'll still face the annual tax season grind. There's no real way around that. So travel or not, you won't be talking to your family much around March/April.

 

[w.mars]

Any Suggestions

Hey Collin,

I live in Nashville Tn. and the job market here is not really appealing. Do you have any suggestions for cities with great job opportunities for accountants?

 

[ColinCPA]

Hey Collin,

I live in Nashville Tn. and the job market here is not really appealing. Do you have any suggestions for cities with great job opportunities for accountants?

All I really know is around here, which is a moderate job market right now. I've heard New York, Houston, and Boston are the biggest markets right now, especially for Big 4.

 

[Samir]

Hey Collin,

I live in Nashville Tn. and the job market here is not really appealing. Do you have any suggestions for cities with great job opportunities for accountants?

Try Huntsville, AL. It's just 100 miles south of Nashville and there's always accounting work due to all the technology companies.