Hillbillylawyer, the job market now days is not what it used to be. I think you need to be patient and keep trying. You need to kiss many frogs before you get prize, as the say goes...Anyhow, I'm planning to attend the career fairs at my campus during the Spring semester. I won't be able to submit resumes through them b/c i'm not a student anymore. However, I'll be able to talk to representatives from many accounting firms and explain my situation to them....who knows maybe they will take my resume and write some notes....Besides that, as you mentioned, I plan to network and tell everybody i know i'm looking for a new job in public accounting....so far I don't know anyone working in public accounting.....

I don't know if you have experience in accounting, but as far as I know, experience that is not in public accounting doesn't count for a public accounting firm. They want you to have experience doing audits or taxes...Switching to public accounting means start from an entry level position.

Another thing I learned is that taxes is more about compliance now days b/c SOX. So if you have a CPA and experience working the actual numbers on tax returns, your law degree will open many doors for you in the medium to long term.

I really think killer2021 is right. Public acct firms look for recent graduates or cpa with relevant experience. So I don't know if there is something available for others??

mikesgirl, when you send your resume, do you clearly specify all the accounting classes you have? i believe that after passing the cpa exam your chances will increase. However, we are in a difficult position because we have experience but not in public accounting and we're not recent grads...so I think i will take longer to find something...I do have accounting experience but not in public accounting and it doesn't count either. I think an entry level position is all you can get to start in this new field....I'm keeping my options open and not just look for public accounting firms...I haven't started job hunting yet (i want to finish with the cpa exam first) but my feeling is that things will be tough with the economy going down hill. Now days, everybody is super conservative as sales growth is not on the horizon in US or abroad...so hiring will not be what is used to be...are you looking only for jobs in public accounting?

mikesgirl, i know what you mean by not wanting boring/slow jobs...corporate accounting is not as exciting and rewarding as public accounting. Keep trying, be patient, and I'm sure you'll find something good. I just think that now days is not the best time to look for a job since everybody is being super conservative a/ hiring due to slowdown of the economy ....good luck in your search...

I almost forgot to mention that I don't know for sure how open or not are B4 or other public accounting firms to hire people who want to switch careers...not a recent grad, working experient but not relevant...i wonder if someone here knows?