Audit / Assurance as a Career
Description of the Job
Auditors are responsible for tracking the cash flow and accounts of companies to ensure that they are being recorded and processed correctly, that assets are protected through appropriate control measures, and that financial records meet legal standards. Auditors can work in both the public and private sector as an internal auditor, an external auditor, or an independent auditor.
Fast Facts
- Number of hours per weekGenerally 45, but busy season can be 60-80
- Average starting pay$62k nationally, $68k in the bay area
- Amount of travel requiredFrequent travel (25-80%), depends on client
Roles & Responsibilities
- Ensures compliance with established internal control procedures by examining records, reports, operating practices, and documentation.
- Verifies assets and liabilities by comparing items to documentation.
- Completes audit workpapers by documenting audit tests and findings.
- Appraises adequacy of internal control systems by completing audit questionnaires.
- Maintains internal control systems by updating audit programs and questionnaires; recommending new policies and procedures.
- Communicates audit findings by preparing a final report; discussing findings with auditees.
- Complies with federal, state, and local security legal requirements by studying existing and new security legislation; enforcing adherence to requirements; advising management on needed actions.
- Prepares special audit and control reports by collecting, analyzing, and summarizing operating information and trends.
Skills Needed
- Attention to detail: The ability to pay close attention to each part and to re-examine facets of the audit if anything seems out of place.
- Strong communication skills: The ability to articulate clear points of view are crucial for conveying ideas and suggestions during meetings, presentations, interviews, and negotiations with audit clients and executives.
- Critical thinking: Auditors need to be able to objectively analyze and evaluate the information provided in an audit to create actionable insights.
- Business Acumen: When helping a particular client, auditors need to be able use lessons from their own experiences to connect the dots.
- Interpersonal skills: Empathy is necessary to understand the client’s perspective in the audit process.
Steps to Enter The Field
- An undergraduate degree is almost always required. The best degree is an accounting degree, as many firms only look at accounting majors. While it may be possible to have another business-related degree, you won’t have the necessary coursework for the CPA exam
- A CPA is a great license to obtain for working in audit. There are 4 total examinations you must pass for the license, and you must complete various coursework. Full requirements can be found here. Many accounting programs at colleges will provide all or most of the courses needed, but it may depend.
- The CPA is a rigorous exam that requires a lot of studying, and most professionals work full-time while studying. However, it is possible to finish all 4 exams before starting full-time if you have a gap after graduation
- Internships are a great way to get into the auditing practice. All the large firms (and many smaller firms) have internship programs after the Junior year of college, with intentions of converting to full-time roles if you perform well.
- Recruiting timelines for Audit can be very early. For example, at Santa Clara University, the first set of applications for Junior-year internships is around February of sophomore year (there are more application rounds later though)
Landscape of the Field & Companies in the Field
- Big 4: The 4 biggest accounting firms in the world. It includes Deloitte, PwC, EY, and KPMG. The workload is generally the highest at these firms, but most people in business will recognize these firms. The Big 4 mostly provides their services to large clients
- Other national accounting firms: these include large, national firms that are not the Big 4. The work is largely the same between all firms, but the Big 4 are much larger an have more name recognition. These include Grant Thornton, BDO, RSM, Baker Tilly, Crowe, Moss Adams, and more.
- Regional / local firms: these are much smaller firms that generally have 1 or a few offices in a specific region. Generally regional firms generally focus more on private clients (companies that aren’t on the stock exchange), so there is less regulation. This may allow one to utilize a larger depth of her accounting knowledge because of the wider focus of the work.
External Resources to Learn More & Develop Skills
- Best CPA Prep Courses: Investopedia provides the best 5 CPA Prep courses (best overall, best artificial intelligence tools, best value, best price)
- List of Various Resources for auditors: The CPA Journal provides a plethora of Audit resources, including audit software-related websites
- Additional information on audit: Includes more detailed information into auditing, including the 3 types of audits, what are 1st/2nd/3rd part audits, the 4 phases of an audit cycle, and other Auditing resources.
Related Careers
- Risk Advisory, Tax, Bookkeeping, financial analysts, cost analysts, budget analysts, personal financial advisors
- Many auditors will transition out of public accounting after a few years (most common route is corporate finance) because the hours can be very grueling. Many look towards audit as a “stepping stone” for their future career, since the CPA license and experience at the Big 4 or other accounting firms can look good on resumes
Informational Interviews
Kyle Metzger
Company Name: Deloitte
Title: Senior Audit Assistant
Years of Experience: 2
Biography
Kyle Metzger is a Senior Audit Assistant at Deloitte. Kyle started as an Audit intern after his junior year and started as an Audit Staff. After 1 year, he was promoted to Senior Audit Assistant. Kyle graduated from Santa Clara University in 2019 with a degree in Accounting.
Overview
Steps took to enter field
Challenges & Favorite Parts
Advice
Clarisse Chan
Company Name: PwC
Title: Experienced Assurance Associate
Years of Experience: 2
Biography
Clarisse Chan graduated from Santa Clara University in 2019 with a degree in Accounting & Information Systems. She began her career as a Core Assurance intern with PwC, where she continued full-time after graduation as a Core Assurance Associate within the Technology market team.