By Arial Starks
Emily O’Dell
The job search process for Master of Accounting programs can be intense, but streamlined. At Vanderbilt Business, it consists of a roughly 6-month period from the initial interactions with recruiting firms in April to returned employment offers in October. Emily O’Dell, Director, Vanderbilt MAcc Programs, walks us through the MAcc recruiting timeline.
“Soft” recruiting efforts before entering the program
Before entering a MAcc program, students are encouraged to utilize the summer months to explore career opportunities. They can network with accounting firms to gauge which ones they want to pursue during formal recruiting. O’Dell says this process begins for Vanderbilt MAcc students during Welcome Weekend in April.
“Prior to Welcome Weekend, all of the Big 4 accounting firms will have received resumes from our incoming students,” O’Dell said. “During Welcome Weekend, we have all of the firms here on campus, and they host info sessions where students are in groups and will go room to room learning about the different firms.”
O’Dell notes that after Welcome Weekend, admitted students have the opportunity to engage with the firms in several ways, including 1-on-1 coffee chats and Zoom sessions. Some firms will even extend students invitations for office visits.
“The summer is the vetting process for the students getting familiar with the recruiters and in turn getting to know more about the firms,” she added.
Formal MAcc recruiting process
As soon as the school year kicks off in August, MAcc programs will begin the formal recruiting process. It includes campus visits from recruiting firms, social events, and 1-on-1 opportunities to engage with company representatives.
“Firms will typically host one big social event, to get familiar with everyone ahead of interviews,” O’Dell noted.
At Vanderbilt, the formal MAcc recruiting process is lock-step. Students can expect to attend 2 social networking events for each of the Big 4 accounting firms before applications drop.
“August to October is the busiest time of recruiting,” said O’Dell. “This is the time when students begin applying to the firms, finding out if they have been accepted to interview, and then interviewing with the firms.”
Most MAcc students will have interviews and have returned decisions by the end of October. O’Dell noted that all Vanderbilt MAcc interviews are currently conducted virtually.
Click through the slides below to see a visual of the MAcc recruiting timeline.
