Why audit over tax

Auditors work with clients from day one, where as, tax staff might not see clients for the first one of two tax seasons. As a tax accountant every family member you have will ask you to do their returns at the worst time of year and you will feel guilty turning them down. There are plenty more differences, but these are the basics.

Think about it and start planning your career path. Either path you choice, you will still want to get your CPA license. Firms want to employ CPAs and actually require it in order to be promoted.

Take a look at my CPA review course comparison page, pick one that is right for you, and get the exam over with. After almost a decade of experience in public accounting, he created MyAccountingCourse. Tax accountants typically work individually; where as, auditors work in teams. Tax accountants usually get paid more than auditors at least starting out.

Auditors can have a life during their busy season. You date each other; if you like each other, you get serious. Then you get a ring and get married. You have to try it to see if you like it. I would recommend you try both audit and tax before you make a decision.

Do you have more questions about tax vs. Kelcey's experience extends from search-engine marketing strategy to HTML, to social media management. Read more articles. Join the Jindal School Community! Are you interested in a career in accounting but don't know whether to choose Tax or Audit? As a Tax Manager at one of the Big 4, I've been happy with my decision to choose Tax in my 4th year of university.

Like most people pursuing a career in accounting, I had also initially thought I wanted to go into Audit, but after talking to people in Tax during the networking events, it had totally transformed the way I thought about a career in Tax. Looking back, I'm glad I had made the decision right for me. Based on almost 7 years at a Big 4 accounting firm, I have compiled a list of 5 reasons why you might want to choose Tax.

Don't get me wrong, Tax has busy seasons too. However, I would say based on what I hear from my Audit colleagues, their hours can be pretty intense. I've heard especially for auditing year-end financial statements, Audit teams can stay up past midnight and work into the weekends for weeks and even months on end!

It all depends on the size of the clients, but since Big 4 have mostly large clients, specifically public companies, that require their financial statements to meet the most stringent regulations as it may impact other investors and lenders, the importance of auditing on a strict timeline is critical.

As for Tax, the pressure mostly has do do with tax return deadlines or even internal deadlines set by the client that may or may not impact external stakeholders. Though, I would say that these deadlines can be more manageable since the scope of the work isn't ginormous like audit. There may be a couple of late nights of work, but from my experience, nothing that would extend to weeks or months. Shall I say, that there is better work life balance in Tax?

I will be referring to pre-Covid times since I'm not sure how the future of working in accounting in general would look like after all of this settles down. In Audit, more often than not, you work in a team environment.

This is great if you like being around people all the time and if you are an extravert, but it also offers less flexibility in how you want to go about doing your work. Especially, if your whole team is expected to be working at the client site during set hours ie.

This may or may not take a toll on your energy levels since you might find yourself hopping around to different parts of the city or even traveling to less glamorous client factories or mining sites to get your work done. As for Tax, you have the comfort of your own set desk at the office. You can even decorate your space and make it feel comfy, with your favourite mug, pictures, and an extra monitor.