Career Path of an Audit Associate at a Big 4 Accounting Firm
Zachary's career path began with a switch from physics to economics and accounting at Cal Poly, driven by a preference for "how things work, but in a more business sense". While early internships offered limited professional development, a busser role unexpectedly provided valuable skills in prioritization and multitasking, ultimately leading to a current Big 4 audit associate position where their initial internship experience is no longer representative of their daily tasks.
Career Exploration, Internships, Prioritization, Entry-Level, Career Development
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Zachary Milano
Audit associate
Big 4 Accounting Firm
Cal Poly
None
Economics
Finance (Banking, Fintech, Investing)
Finance
Greek Life Member
Video Highlights
1. Switched from physics to economics and accounting in college after realizing an interest in business applications.
2. Interned at an uncle's housing REIT and a restaurant, gaining experience in prioritizing tasks and managing multiple responsibilities.
3. Worked at the current Big 4 firm during an internship, noting that the low-level tasks of the internship are not representative of the current role.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path, starting with your experiences in college and any internships or jobs you had before your current role?
My career path started when I declared my major at Cal Poly as a physics major. I chose physics primarily because I enjoyed it, along with chemistry, and found both subjects interesting.
However, in high school, I took an economics class. I realized then that economics was much more engaging to me than physics. I appreciated that it still focused on how things work, but from a business perspective.
As soon as I arrived at Cal Poly, I switched my major to economics and accounting. During college, I completed a couple of internships.
I interned at my uncle's housing REIT, though I didn't do much there; it was mainly to keep me busy. After that, I worked as a buser at a restaurant. I actually learned a lot in that role, particularly how to prioritize tasks and manage multiple responsibilities simultaneously.
Later, I interned at the company where I'm currently employed. I don't think I learned much from that specific internship, as the work I did then isn't representative of my current role. During the internship, I performed very basic tasks that I no longer need to handle. Someone else does them now, or I complete them very quickly, unlike during my internship when they took days.
Advizer Personal Links