Ha ha! Yeah, someone's been drinking the "Summer of Recovery" koolaid. The economy isn't getting better - the fundamentals have actually been weakening the last 3 months or so.

what are your alternatives?

do you have offers from a BB investment bank, PE shop, or HF? Do you have a job lined up in an industry your are really passionate about? It really depends.

I would never take a big 4 job over a front office banking/investment job.

If you are deciding between Big 4 and a private accounting job, take the Big 4 job. No question.

It is all relative. A grad from a state school that goes into big 4 audit/tax has done pretty well, while a grad from an ivy/prestigous private school prob should be disappointed.

also, if you want to get paid in life, you better expect long hours and stress. if the job had no stress and easy hours, it wouldnt pay very well.

cant speak about the mid-tiers, but do a search on monster/cfo.com/careerbuilder for accounting/finance jobs and see how many specifically request Big 4 experience.