Many accounting firms recruit on-campus at a number of universities - check with your career services department to determine which firms recruit at your school. If a firm recruits on your campus, make sure that you make contacts at the firm whenever possible.
The recruiting process for undergraduate public accounting hiring begins earlier than for most professions. Usually, students in their final year of college will have their offers in hand by Thanksgiving. The largest firms like to anticipate and fill their personnel needs earlier than many other organizations. This means that accounting students have to be fully prepared for interview season before most of their classmates.
The firms may have a reception prior to the interview date to meet people and form their interview list. If there is a reception, you should attend. Go to the reception dressed appropriately and make at least one or two contacts. Get their business cards and send them a thank-you letter expressing your interest in their firm.
A test of social skills
With an accounting degree from a good school, you have the skills necessary to work in an accounting firm or as an accountant in a corporation. What you have to prove to the interviewer and the firm is that you have the social skills necessary to be successful and relate to their clients. You need to prove that you have good ethical standards and that you're able to make good decisions. The interview process will be discussed in detail later in this chapter.
Regional recruitment
Recruiters work for regional offices and thus recruit for offices in their region. For example, at Virginia Tech, the Big Four firms recruit mostly for the Washington, DC or Virginia offices. If you want to work in an office that is not recruited for directly on your campus, you can request an offer at another office. The recruiters will make a recommendation to the recruiters for the region you desire, but your chances of getting a job will be significantly reduced. It might be a better idea to take an internship at one of the offices a firm is recruiting on your campus for, and trying to secure a transfer after you get your full-time offer.
There are several steps to the interview process for both internships and fulltime positions. The interview process for each school will vary, so make sure to check with your career services department early in the year. If you're really serious about a career in accounting, you want to make sure you don't miss any opportunities to network with existing employees.
The recruiting process for internships and full-time positions is fairly similar. The timing will be a bit different. Internship interviews are conducted in the beginning of spring semester, while full-time interviews occur during the fall. Either way, the recruiting process will begin with a company presentation in the fall. These presentations will give you the opportunity to learn about the various positions available within a company and the locations that they are recruiting for. It is important to attend these presentations to show your interest and to begin networking with the recruiting team. After the presentation, you should try to make at least one or two contacts with the interviewers or the recruiters. In the months that follow, you should contact them with a thank-you letter and with any additional questions you may have. One word of caution: during these presentations, be sure to have your story straight. Anything you say to the recruiters during these presentations may or may not be remembered. Just to be safe, make sure that your later comments remain consistent with those that you initially made at the presentation.
Interview preparation
After the company presentation, it's time to start preparing for the interview. (It's never too early to start preparing for your interviews.) There are several key steps that can help you prepare.
- Research each firm thoroughly. Know the firm. Your initial research should allow you to completely understand the opportunities that are available at each firm. You should know the strengths and weaknesses of each firm. Your goal is to impress the interviewer with your knowledge. This will allow you to have a leg up on the other candidates by proving your interest in their specific firm. (For 50-page insider profiles on each of the Big Four firms, get Vault's Accounting Employer Profiles.)
- Utilize career services. Start early. Your university will have some services for interview preparation and practice. Take advantage of all of these opportunities - early and often. The career department will have valuable information that can help you prepare for your interview. They have a good idea of what the firms are looking for and what strategies work and don't work.
- Develop your interview strategy. Know what skills and strengths of yours you want to emphasize. Keep them in the back of your head at all times and make sure that you are prepared to demonstrate that you have these specific skills and strengths. Prepare your story - be able to tell the recruiter why you picked this university, why public accounting versus private accounting, why tax versus audit.
- Express your interest. It is important to continue to express your interest to each of the companies that you would like to interview with. At least one month prior to interviews, you should send the main recruiter a cover letter and resume expressing your interest and requesting a spot on the list of students being interviewed.
- Prepare answers to sample interview questions. Alater section in this chapter includes some sample interview questions. For internship interviews, expect mostly general questions. The recruiters will want to get an idea of who you are and whether you can function in a team. Are you motivated? Do you have the interpersonal skills that are required to work with clients? Are you willing to learn? These are all going to be important to your recruiter. If you are interviewing for a full-time position, your recruiter will want to understand what you did for your summer internship and they may ask you some technical questions. It is more likely that you will get technical questions for full-time interviews because, theoretically, you would have had an internship in the field of accounting and you will have several accounting classes under your belt.
Finally, the interview
At this point, you have prepared your story and the answers to the typical interview questions. You're ready to wow them with your accounting knowledge. Let's talk about some of the basics. Make sure you are appropriately dressed. Most interviews will require business attire - wear a conservative suit, conservative shoes and little jewelry. Do not wear strong smelling perfumes. Take a portfolio with extra copies of your resume. Show up on time - in fact show up a few minutes early. Give the recruiter a firm handshake. And no matter what, always show poise and confidence throughout the interview. During the interview, the interviewer may try to rattle you. They want to see how you function under pressure. Accountants must show poise and grace in all circumstances. They want to know you have ethics and an active lifestyle. Grades and extracurricular activities will be extremely important. Emphasize your GPA to the interviewer if it's good.
After the interview
Waiting to hear back from the interviewer about whether you made it to second rounds can be gut-wrenching. Each time the phone rings you jump, hoping it's the firm you just interviewed with, calling to ask you back for more interviews or to give you an offer. Everyone goes through this nervousness. Try to go on with your life: continue with your job search, study, hang out with your friends, and prepare for future interviews.
There is one things you can do after the interview to ensure that you've done all you can: send the interviewer a thank-you note. No matter how good or how bad an interview goes, a thank-you note will win you extra points. Make sure the note expresses your continued interest in the firm. Re-emphasize anything that helps you stand out from other interviewees. And a final check - make sure there are no spelling errors.
What now?
A few days after your interview, the firm should contact you with one of two answers: 1) we want you to interview in second rounds, or 2) thanks for your interest, but we can't offer you a job.
If you don't get asked back for second rounds, it's not over. You still have other interviews. Ask the recruiter for feedback and try to fix any problems for your next interview. If you are asked back for second rounds, it's also not over. Second-round interviews can be held either on campus or at the firm's offices. Once again, make sure you're prepared. During these interviews, make sure your answers are always consistent. Ensure that you continue to show interest in the firm. If second rounds are on campus, expect one or two interviews with seniors or managers. If the interviews are on-site, you may have up to six interviews with seniors, managers or partners. Again, make sure you send a thank-you note to each interviewer.
You may receive an offer at second rounds, after second rounds, or you may be asked to come back for third rounds. This will vary by firm.