Students Working with the GCMC: Path to PwC

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This week, we sat down with James Chan (MS IS ’22) to learn more about his experience with recruiting this semester, having landed multiple offers. James shares bits of advice, including a unique way to prepare for interviews.
Hi James! Thanks so much for chatting with us. Why don’t you tell our readers a little bit about yourself?

 

Sure thing. Happy to chat. I am a second semester graduate student in the MS IS program. I graduated from Baruch with an undergraduate in Accountancy, but I came back to complete my CPA 150 credits and get another shot at recruitment. I took advantage of this opportunity, and I have accepted an offer as a PwC associate in 2022.

 

Congratulations on securing multiple offers this fall, and on accepting PwC! What do you think helped you stand out in the application processes?

 

Honestly, I think my work experience is what made me stand out. I worked in retail, real estate, and corporate accounting before breaking into public accounting. Even during public accounting, I worked my way up from a regional firm to a national firm. Every one of my jobs was in a different role, but I learned different skill sets and how to be a better professional throughout each of these jobs. I believe these experiences gave me the confidence and competence to answer any question during my interviews.

 

Makes sense, and so happy to hear it. Speaking of interviews, how did interviews go overall? Anything you wish you’d known going into them all?

 

My interviews went very well. I believe this was because I tried to set the energy of the room.  I cannot sing, but every time before an interview, I would sing two Karaoke songs. These two songs used up my nervous energy and hyped me up. During the interview, I just tried to have a conversation with my interviewer, and it flowed naturally. Of course, I did my research and preparation beforehand. It is cliché but I would advise to just be yourself.

 

Karaoke songs! That’s such a good idea. Glad to hear they went well overall. Any last bits of advice for students and/or recent grads who might be starting out their own job search?

 

My advice to students or recent graduates is to go at your own pace. During my junior year, I could not even get a public accounting job, but I took every opportunity that came my way. I believe we each have our paths, and we all progress at our own pace. Sometimes we get where we want to quicker, and sometimes it is more roundabout. As long as you are deliberately working towards your goal, you will get where you want to be.

 

For more practical, actionable advice, I would recommend joining a student organization. Going through the recruiting process on your own can be tough. I would say to find an organization where your peers can show you the steps they took to get their dream career. The best thing about Baruch is our network. Make sure to take full advantage of it. You never know where these relationships will take you.

 

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For assistance with your own job/internship search, we welcome you to:

Comments

John Williams said…
Nice article, Thanks for sharing, check out my work on real estate social network.
December 14, 2022 at 12:18 PM
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