Starting salaries in #accounting have gone from B school leaders to laggards. 1st year auditors today barely make more than an auditor who started in 2011 in nominal dollars and less in real dollars. The daily hours + 30 more credits + CPA demand fair compensation. $55K isn’t it. https://t.co/9Lc2hzELev
Back again to decipher more of the data that you so graciously shared with us on our salary thread from December.
After noting that average Big 4 salaries and non-Big 4 salaries were essentially even, we now present the average regional salaries for you enjoyment or dismay:
• Mid-Atlantic– $88,831
• Northeast– $72,024
• Southeast– $56,000
• Midwest– $65,124
• Southwest– $73,185
• West – $64,706
Some analysis and the map, after the jump.
Surprisingly the Mid-Atlantic boasted the highest average salary based on the data collected. This was due primarily to two salaries that were reported from “JDs” working in “Washington National Tax.” The Mid-Atlantic average also included an Associate Director that reported a considerably higher salary than the average. If these three salaries are removed, the average salary is $76,254. which may be more in line with your expectations.
Another surprise that we saw was the higher than expected Southwest average salary. Again in this case, a brave Senior Manager in an advisory practice reported a much higher salary than most submitted. When this is removed the Southwest average comes down to $68,134, again, probably closer to what you would expect.
The Northeast, Southeast, and West all seem about right to us although we might have expected the West salaries to be a bit higher but then again we’re going with what we’ve got.
The map below shows how we grouped the states in the respective regions, with a few additional details on the regions.
7 thoughts on “How Much Should Public Accounting Starting Salaries Be to Make Public Accounting Starting Salaries Less Awful?”
I think we’d need to be starting our people around $75K / $85K / $100K / $120K in LCOL -> VHCOL respectively to be attracting good candidates and remaining competitive.
I think the key here is that starting salaries need to increase similar to average of increases across the levels each year, not based on inflation or any other statistic.
Public accounting is meant to be a training ground for 90% of those who enter. Much like legal/medical and other professional training, the idea is to get the training from the big 4 (best training in the world) and leave for the private sector. That’s the real payoff!
Yeah, but public pays so much lower now why even both starting at a public? and I’m saying this as someone who spent 7 years in audit, when I left earlier this year, there were entire classes below me who are just 100% gone, my office didn’t even have anyone they can promote to manager, meanwhile managers and senior managers are quitting at record levels. Public accounting sure wants to weed people out, but never at this 100% level, to the point where we’re having partners who are acting as in charges on jobs, because they don’t have SM, managers, or even a proper senior on a job, just a second year staff leading a couple interns and off shore staffs. That’s the reality, it’s long past the ‘people who want to make partner stay and put in the work for a future payoff, and everyone else fucks off after a few years for a better job in private’, it’s everyone is gone, let’s have this random person from India do some opening balance sheet testing by themselves 🙂
Salary compression is going to start to be a thing … it’s one thing to try to attract new entrants … but, as the salary increases at the lowest level start to bump up against the Seniors -> Managers -> Sr Mgrs/Directors -> it’ll start to get untenable for partner profitability … it’s not a problem until it is …
We’re long overdue for increases across the board in accounting. Its not right that I started at $55k back in 2010 and many firms aren’t much higher than that 12 years (and lots of inflation) later.
Its not like the partners at these firms couldn’t eat some of the cost too. They’ve been making out like bandits for years.
We should be more like commercial banks. Entry level is $40k per year, but they get a VP title.
I think we’d need to be starting our people around $75K / $85K / $100K / $120K in LCOL -> VHCOL respectively to be attracting good candidates and remaining competitive.
I think the key here is that starting salaries need to increase similar to average of increases across the levels each year, not based on inflation or any other statistic.
Public accounting is meant to be a training ground for 90% of those who enter. Much like legal/medical and other professional training, the idea is to get the training from the big 4 (best training in the world) and leave for the private sector. That’s the real payoff!
Yeah, but public pays so much lower now why even both starting at a public? and I’m saying this as someone who spent 7 years in audit, when I left earlier this year, there were entire classes below me who are just 100% gone, my office didn’t even have anyone they can promote to manager, meanwhile managers and senior managers are quitting at record levels. Public accounting sure wants to weed people out, but never at this 100% level, to the point where we’re having partners who are acting as in charges on jobs, because they don’t have SM, managers, or even a proper senior on a job, just a second year staff leading a couple interns and off shore staffs. That’s the reality, it’s long past the ‘people who want to make partner stay and put in the work for a future payoff, and everyone else fucks off after a few years for a better job in private’, it’s everyone is gone, let’s have this random person from India do some opening balance sheet testing by themselves 🙂
Salary compression is going to start to be a thing … it’s one thing to try to attract new entrants … but, as the salary increases at the lowest level start to bump up against the Seniors -> Managers -> Sr Mgrs/Directors -> it’ll start to get untenable for partner profitability … it’s not a problem until it is …
We’re long overdue for increases across the board in accounting. Its not right that I started at $55k back in 2010 and many firms aren’t much higher than that 12 years (and lots of inflation) later.
Its not like the partners at these firms couldn’t eat some of the cost too. They’ve been making out like bandits for years.
We should be more like commercial banks. Entry level is $40k per year, but they get a VP title.