| Topic Name: |
Horrible Salary in Big 5? |
| Message Name: |
Instant Gratification |
| Date Posted: |
04/29/2001 |
| In Reply To: |
I work audit for audit for a Big Five in Washington D.C. I started in July '99. My starting salary was 38K + 2K signing bonus. This year, I make $42.5K. I worked 70 OT hours my first year. I am expected to work 200 hours of OT a year, and 50 hours a week during busy season. Though some of the work in an audit is perfunctory, much of the work requires critical thought and analysis. (e.g., accounting for options). During the second-year at the Big Five, most people are in-charging jobs and supervising personnel.
Employees in the Big Five are paid fairly their first year (if they don't work too much OT), underpaid their second-year, and grossly underpaid from during the Senior and Manager years. People hope they can leave after they make Senior, then make more money and work fewer hours. Some Managers have left my firm and have had 'sweetheart' deals. One Manager became a Controller for a Company that went public--he had a lot of options. Additionally, Partners make an average of $350K, and start at $250. Few, however, make Partner.
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| Message: |
I have been in the profession for over 25 years (Big 8,6,5) the whole time. I am a partner now and make a very nice income (higher than the numbers noted). I started in NY at $12,500. My advice to people starting out is that you can always find a job at more than you are making. You have to think about the future. I remember many people leaving as a Senior or Manager and making a jump from say $15K to $25 or $30. Now, 20 years later, they are making $100. They get into corporate jobs far down the ladder. It is true, some become CFOs. But just as the poster said, its hard to make partner, its just as hard to become a CFO. Remember, if you add up all the partners at the Big 5, it probably numbers 11-12,000. How many high power CFOs are there 500 or 1000. The professional environment you will find in a Big 5 firm is hard to replicate in industry. It sounds like hype, but you truely work with the best and brightest.
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