Company: PwC
Date: 2009-04-03
Overall rating: 4/5
Employment status: current

Just suck it up and pay your dues...
Pros: In my opinion, working for a Big 4 accounting firm is the best thing you could possibly do for your career if you plan on working in the financial world. Nowhere else will you find a bunch of 22 year-olds with such a high degree of responsibility...i.e. a tax associate who prepares a billion dollar company's (or individual's) tax return or a audit associate who interacts directly with the CEO, CFO, Controller of a Fortune 500 company. But of course, anything so rewarding does not come without a price. The longer you can tough it out at PwC, the more rewarding it will be for your career.
Cons: PwC sounds like heaven to college recruits and interns; however, after working your first busy season at the Firm, you realize that at the end of the day, PwC faces economic pressures, just like any other company out there. When you are charging clients for $150 - $200 for every hour a little associate works on an engagement, the stresses of budgets and time constraints come on harder than ever. At the same time, we have to worry about Deloitte or EY or even Grant Thorton coming along and stealing out clients. So as you could imagine, the level of stress at PwC can be extremely high. You'd be amazed how quickly the Firm's expectations of you increase after just a few months.