What just happened?

Remember the entry in November 2008 where I signed off with a vague “I got an interview with a CA firm later”?  Well enough time has passed that I don’t feel so bad and can write about it.

Not only was it the first job interview since graduating, it was the biggest job interview of my life.  I mean an interview with an approved CA training office, if I get the job I’m set.  You should’ve seen me, my hands were shaking, my teeth were clattering.  I probably walked in circles for 10 minutes trying to calm myself down before heading to the office.

I meet the interviewer and we get started.  “So tell me about yourself” he asks.  That was  easy enough to answer, probably the first question asked in any interview.  But looking back now I laugh at the answer I gave.  It was rehearsed and stiff.  *Wishes I can go back and slap myself silly*

A few more pretty general questions about taking the subway, that C+ on my transcript, and when I plan on taking the UFE.  But then he goes on a 10 minute speech about the firm, their experience with previous CA students, and their clients.  Wait, what’s going on?  I’m just sitting there listening to him talk, commenting when I get the chance.  I ask the questions I’ve prepared at the end, shake hands and leave.

That was it!?  In and out in 15 minutes, with questions that I would basically deem as small talk.  Is this how smaller CA firms do it?  Is it because they don’t have an actual HR department to conduct a proper and rigourous interview so therefore it’s more casual and based more on personality?  Or is it because they’ve hired tons of CA students year after year and gotten so good at it that they know who’s CA material just by looking at them and their resumé?  The former seemed to be the general opinion I got from a few of my friends.  Still, something didn’t seem right.

A few weeks go by and no word.  So I call them.  The receptionist picks up and I ask for the interviewer.  She puts me on hold.  A few seconds go by and its the receptionist again…uhoh.  It seems the interviewer is in a meeting and I should leave a voicemail.  “It’s ok, I’ll call again later.”  She insists on leaving a voicemail.  Oh…is that how it is?  I get it now.  I leave my voicemail and went to grab a shovel to bury my pipedream.

The rejection letter arrives a week later.  No chance for feedback.

So what happened?  Dunno.  Was it me?  Dunno.  Was it them, did they already know who they were hiring?  Dunno.

Lessons learned: Calm down, be natural, don’t sound rehearsed.

Reboot

It’s been more than a few months since my disappearance and lately I’ve been having the urge to write again.  There’s been a few developments during this time that I feel like getting off my chest over the next little while. I’ll talk about my work now, my thoughts/fears about the future, and also recount what happened during my hiatus.

First things first, the CA “dream” is on the back burner indefinitely.   Some day, maybe.  Not now or the foreseeable future though.  CGA seems more likely.

So, a little update on where I am right now.  I currently have a contract position in the “finance” department with a company.  Finance is in quotes because I’m REALLY in a sub-department WITHIN the finance department, and the work I do is only tangentially related to accounting/finance.  But the people are nice, the surroundings are comfortable and the work is new and interesting…for now.

Sometimes I think about the route of a new grad who scores a Big4 position.  They’re already on their way to a designation and within 3 years time they’ll be a fully qualified CA, possibly in a manager position and opportunities to jump into industry.  It’ll be a tough 3 years for them but if the propaganda is true there’s a bucket of gold waiting for them at the end.

Then I try to see what kind of route I’ll take.  Long, winding, with equal odds the path will take me to a bucket of coal.

What do they mean, “I interview well”?

I’ve now had 2 different hiring managers, in the MIDDLE of my interview with them, compliment me that “I interview/am doing well.”

To me this has got to be one of the worst things to hear during the interview.  In both instances, I was aware that I was starting to trail off at the end of my answers and it would be at this exact moment that they gave me the compliment.  Did the hiring managers sense my nervousness and simply offer these comforting words to calm me down?  A technique they pull out from their bag of tricks to motivate the candidate to do better?

If there’s one thing the whole interview, and subsequent rejection, process has taught me is that nothing is ever what it seems.  Broken promises, insincerity, false appearances, the whole gamut.

Fell off the wagon

I’ve been pretty bummed out for a few weeks now.  What was originally just going to be a small break from job hunting turned into a death spiral of general unproductive laziness.  Procrastination was my bed buddy and my poison.  It’s kind of embarrassing actually, and I’m not very proud of my lack of effort.

To me the job hunt experience is comparable to that of an exam period.  I know I should be studying, but I’m not.  But at least there’s a definite end to exam period, a date to look forward to when the suffering and mental anguish will end.  Who knows when this job hunt will end?

Extra motivation was gained today when I read two job postings that peaked my interest.  I found them when I woke up at 4:00AM or so.  The awful P-word kicked in and I thought I have the whole day to apply.  So I kept pushing it back and pushing back: did some stuff on the computer, ate something, took a nap blah blah blah.

When I finally muster up the motivation to apply I discovered that the jobs were expired already.  Posted and expired in a single day.  Are there that many unemployed accountant grads out there?  Or is it because these jobs were never there in the first place?  Maybe the company already knew who they were going to hire and the posting of these jobs were just a formality to satisfy some company policy.  Well I’ll choose to believe that there was some sort of mix-up for now to keep my spirits high.

New plan of attack now.  Stay on top of job hunt.  Ready applications to send to CA firms in December and January when people leave after receiving UFE results and busy season begins.  Continue with applications to industry positions too.  Hope for the best?

Oh and I have an interview later at a CA firm (sent application weeks ago, before I got all demoralized).  If anything, it’ll be good interview practice.

Ineffective Encouragement from Deloitte

Weeks after knowing I’ve been rejected, Deloitte FINALLY decides to officially notify me (and hundreds of other applicants) by sending me a rejection letter.  Gee thanks.

Excerpt -

“The selection process is always difficult as there are a large number of talented individuals with diverse backgrounds participating in recruiting.  We believe; however, that you have the qualities to be successful in our profession…”

Might I say, they are an evil bunch.  I have the “qualities to be successful in the profession”!?!?!?  Am I to honestly believe that statement applies when it’s coming from this generic, automated rejection letter?  What if another applicant had a C+ average in their ICAO courses?  They wouldn’t be eligible for the CA designation (B- needed), are probably unsuited for accounting, and Deloitte would’ve rejected them.  But then they get this rejection letter telling them they can be successful in the profession?  It’d be a shame if they continued their job search for a CA student position when it’s destined for failure based on these “words of encouragement”.

Dim Future

Everyday during the past few weeks I’ve been obsessively checking out the Career forum at Red Flag Deals.  There’s a CA accounting firm thread there you see, as has been the ritual every year at this time.  It’s been my main source of information during this recruitment season, and, quite honestly, pivotal in helping me stay sane.

Originally intended by the OP to be for people who have received interviews from the Big 4 + Grant Thornton to talk, has instead been mainly to let people know when they’ve been REJECTED for interviews.  Every few days somebody would post when interviews were handed out for each school, and if you weren’t one of those who got one then you would know.  Immensely helpful since it keeps you from sitting by the phone everyday just waiting, wondering, daydreaming.  Not to mention reading about others complaining about not getting an interview reminds me that I’m not the only one.

Rumours abound as to why people didn’t get hired though.  E&Y having a 3.8 GPA cutoff seems to me the most outrageous and most likely false.  If I wanted to I could’ve started a rumour too.  Hmm lets see here…PwC would throw away all applications that used the letter “E” in the first sentence.

For someone in my position (rejected by Big 4), Krupo says to find another accounting job in the meantime or keep applying to other small-midsize firms.  I’m currently doing both, keeping my eye out for jobs as well as mass-mailing CA Training offices.  Am I too late?  What about the other 90% of grads out there in the same position as me, having a similar (or better) résumé?  There’s probably 1000+ qualified accounting grads out there, with only so many positions.

Big 4 Rejections

Can’t say I’m surprised. I’ve always have a major inferiority complex. Deloitte, KPMG, Ernst & Young, PricewaterhouseCoopers…never were in the cards for me. But damn, not even an interview? Let the inner reflection begin.

Probably a billion things wrong: grades not high enough, not enough experience, not enough volunteer/extracurricular activities, crappy cover letter, pissed people off at the information sessions, guy shortlisting my application hates my name.  Jeez…just like analyzing a break up, just a bunch of “what if’s” and going around in circles.

I know all the reasons against working at a Big 4: huge workload, repetitive tasks, overhyped by recruiters. Repeating them in my head makes me feel better. Yea you ivory tower disgraces, I don’t want in your club. Secretly I do, but hell if I let you know that. Just try giving me an offer, I’d rip it up so fast……wait I’m kidding, are you going to give me an offer?

So what now? Find a position at a midsize firm, if that. Not the end of the world, but not exactly the top of MT. Everest either.