Travelling is fun if the road isn’t bumpy. Else it becomes an adventure. It’s not like adventurous trips are not fun, in fact, they inspire the next level of fun. These trips test your skill, imbue patience and above all, put your determination through the paces – the absolute state of mind where your priority is very clearly set, “Come what may happen, I will strive until I reach my destination”.
What makes an adventurous trip different from normal is that the satisfaction comes later - when you've reached your milestones after tremendous effort, unlike routine trips where you enjoy the journey itself and are pampered throughout. However, these milestones, which help you measure your progress and giving you a sense of joy and the sheer happiness, may also become your biggest pitfalls. Because, as I said, this is an adventure and adventures aren’t smooth throughout. They only get more intense as you fly higher. So if you are lost in the milestones, you are never going to reach the destination. It’s a warning, not an advice!
Chartered Accountancy course is no less an adventure, where your skills are tested, patience is sought, and above all your determination has to be preserved – “Come what may happen, I will strive until I become a CA”. Clearing CA Intermediate / IPCC examination is one major milestone in this journey. It makes you feel closer to the coveted title; you feel like you are now a part of the elite family. While I congratulate you on your success, the purpose of this article is rather to warn you, “Don’t get lost in the glitters”. Milestones exist to enable you to assess the completion of your journey, and to plan the roadmap ahead. Don’t get lost in the celebrations, as the journey ahead is only going to get tougher. And the next milestone in that journey is your Articleship. Articleship is the 3-year mandatory internship that CA Intermediate qualified candidates are required to complete before the CA Final examination. Here's more on the CA articleship milestone.
Articleship is not only important for your CA Final examination, but is also forms the backbone of your entire career.
Your first job is directly linked to the Articleship experience you gain. A good score in the CA exam gives you an edge in securing your first job. However, valuable Articleship experience is an asset forever.You may get a good first job on the basis of marks, however, the road thereon depends on your Articleship experience. At the end of the day, you have to practically present what you have learnt. You can jump to the next promotion quicker if your basics are very crystallized during the Articleship itself, as it directly reflects in your work.
A good CA Articleship experience is helpful in understanding the practical aspects of what you have studied like Accounting, Auditing and Taxation in general, and Costing, Financial Management, Information Systems and Controls Audit, etc. as well, if you are lucky to get those opportunities, which in turn helps in your overall studies. Hence choosing the right CA firm for your articleship becomes extremely important, not only for your CA Final exam, but for success in your future practice.
I am clearly striking off small firms from this discussion because it is the option of last resort and does not guarantee a good experience in all cases. So, the choice is between Big Four Firms and Midsize Firms. Let me tell you upfront -
Neither of the Big Four Firms or Midsize Firms is a complete experience
What do Big Four Firms and Midsize Firms offer?
In short, Big Fours = Large clients, specialised work, and Midsize Firms = Small clients, a variety of work. As such, I believe, it is important to gain both the experiences to become the best in your field and competitive in your career. The best way to gain both experiences is doing CA Articleship in one, and job in the other – e.g. Articleship in a midsize firm and the first job in one of the Big Four firms. This ensures that in a 5 year period from CA Articleship to 2 years post-qualification, you have learnt to handle both smaller and bigger clients and the breadth and depth of work as well.
Which is appropriate for me?
Now the question of where should you join arises. The answer is that it depends on where you wish to be in the long term. Some general scenarios are as follows:
What should I do if I'm not confident about my future career path right now?
If you don’t have a clear choice of a future career, then go for the best opportunity available with you, where a bigger firm is a better firm. CA Articleship in Big Four Firms will give you a platform from where you can do any kind of job. On the other hand, CA Articleship at Midsize Firms will help you learn all kinds of assignments and give you a platform from where you can enter into any field of choice. So accordingly, the choice between ‘job security’ and ‘choice security’ remains in your realm, as the choices we make defines the person we become.
As your CA Articleship will shape your career ahead, it is important that the decision is made on the correct parameters and not on random recommendations of people around. Following are the factors which you must keep in mind while joining a midsize firm –
As such there aren’t many differences among the Big Four Firms as they all operate in almost the same way, especially when it comes to training articles. So, once you have decided to join a Big Four firm, the only question left to ask is the choice of city and the choice of department. Choose a city near your hometown and a department on the basis of your future plans. Big Four Firms usually hire in the auditing department and the options of Articleship in other departments like Business Taxation, Indirect Taxation, Financial Advisory, etc. are rare.
The choice of CA Articleship firm is a very important decision and therefore, make sure you choose wisely, as your career path depends on it. And once selected, do your job with utmost sincerity with a focus on learning. Never say a no to any learning opportunity. You can blame the education system for its rigidity in ranking students' knowledge, however, Articleship is an open platform and a real-life experience. So make no excuses for not performing well in this department of your career. Give your best here and I assure you the best career ahead.
--
About the Author: Saurabh Toshniwal is a qualified Chartered Accountant and a Cost & Management Accountant. He was previously associated with Deloitte Haskins and Sells, Bangalore and is currently working with Ernst & Young, Bangalore. Saurabh is a public speaker and counsels students through his mentoring drives.
Disclaimer: The views expressed here are solely those of the author in his private capacity. Exambazaar does not bear responsibility for any opinions expressed herewith.