Being that I didn't graduate high school until 2001, college in 2005, law school in 2008, my LLM in 2009, all I have been personally exposed to is a wretched job market where getting entry level offers in tax of any kind at the Big 4 is next to impossible. What was it like in robust times? Was there a lot of excess? Were there a lot of worthless warm bodies collecting paychecks? I had a professor in my LLM program tell me that in past years he had seen students holding off on Big 4 until they were sure they couldn't get into big law and then it was almost a let down for them to go to work there. He said that the accounting firms would come through and "snatch everyone up who didn't have a job yet in the firms." Is this true? Hearing that kind of stuff is crazy to me because I've sent out probably 500 applications, networked my tail off, and I can't even find temp work for $10 an hour. Since all I know and hear about is how bad it is now, I'd be curious to hear what is was like and HOPEFULLY will be like again. I'm sure the days of complete excess if they ever existed won't be coming along, but I'd like to hear stories from people who have been in the business for a while.

Seems a bit odd w/ your credentials you can't find an entry level job in the big 4. Good times = 15-20% raises per year as a top rated person. Entry level w/ your credentials 2-3 years ago = 70K start as big 4 in small market.


Being that I didn't graduate high school until 2001, college in 2005, law school in 2008, my LLM in 2009, all I have been personally exposed to is a wretched job market where getting entry level offers in tax of any kind at the Big 4 is next to impossible. What was it like in robust times? Was there a lot of excess? Were there a lot of worthless warm bodies collecting paychecks? I had a professor in my LLM program tell me that in past years he had seen students holding off on Big 4 until they were sure they couldn't get into big law and then it was almost a let down for them to go to work there. He said that the accounting firms would come through and "snatch everyone up who didn't have a job yet in the firms." Is this true? Hearing that kind of stuff is crazy to me because I've sent out probably 500 applications, networked my tail off, and I can't even find temp work for $10 an hour. Since all I know and hear about is how bad it is now, I'd be curious to hear what is was like and HOPEFULLY will be like again. I'm sure the days of complete excess if they ever existed won't be coming along, but I'd like to hear stories from people who have been in the business for a while.

you used to be able to smoke a cigarette right at your desk and then wash it down with a whiskey on the rocks as you reviewed tax returns.

Now, even if you do get a job, you can't smoke or drink in the office. Not sure we'll see those days again.

Basically, the partners did great and everyone else did okay. Now, the partners are doing okay and everyone else is being shown the door so that the partners can get closer to doing well.

If you go back in the archives of this blog, you'll see alot more B4 bashing than you do now. No one bashes the B4 now that the alternative is unemployment. They're still bashworthy though. They've got a virtual monopoly on the tax consulting world, they could care less whether you get any sort of financial return on your JD/LLM, and they're going to work you like a slave.

But they still might give you a job...and that's something.

Fact is, if you work harder than your peers you always get paid, if you are a slack, you get nothing.

Basically, the partners did great and everyone else did okay. Now, the partners are doing okay and everyone else is being shown the door so that the partners can get closer to doing well.

If you go back in the archives of this blog, you'll see alot more B4 bashing than you do now. No one bashes the B4 now that the alternative is unemployment. They're still bashworthy though. They've got a virtual monopoly on the tax consulting world, they could care less whether you get any sort of financial return on your JD/LLM, and they're going to work you like a slave.

But they still might give you a job...and that's something.

Obviously good times are better and bad times are worse, but B4 is great overall and if you are a strong performer, you will always be taken care of. But, everyone has their own story/experience. By the way, why should B4 care whether you get any financial return on your degrees? Those are individual choices. You obviously don't care about the partners' financial return on their investment. Partners are the ones that take a pay cut in bad times. In fact, the partners are under MASSIVE pressure in these economic times to bring in business--as if it weren't already hard being a rainmaker.

The market works so that you are compensated on your value or perceived value (not your value plus your school debt). If you believe you are not compensated for your value, then it makes sense that you would want to go work where the compensation was more equitable from your perspective. Yet, instead it seems like chronic complaining will continue to prevail on this site. It works though because so many other people also would like to join in with the complaining. (Sorry, just hearing a lot of complaining right now everywhere!).