The Advantages to a CPA & JD Forum

[dosh142]

Basically, what are they? I have a few people encouraging me to go this route. One is a financial advisor. He says this combination can be very valuable. Anyways, I'm a math and econ major, but I'm thinking about dropping the econ and switching to accounting to go with my math. So in your opinion, is this route worthwhile to pursue and do you know anyone who has completed it and been successful?

[TheBigMediocre]

General wisdom has been that the CPA designation itself isn't that appealing to firms. Some TLSers have said that they've seen positive responses in interviews (for transactional practice groups) when they've had a CPA + a few years experience at a big 4.

Also note that for full CPA designation, you'll have to pass all 4 sections of the CPA (which will include IFRS by the time you take it) and get 2000 working hours of experience in a qualified position. If you think you can do that plus grind a few years out at a Big 4, you might see some benefit down the line. Enjoy spending your Saturdays counting physical inventory at a client site if you go into audit.

Also, obligatory "use the search function because there are a ton of threads on this" comment.

[dosh142]

Thanks for the reply and most of that does make sense to me. However, I should have been more specific. I'm thinking of doing something along the lines of estate planning or more in the financial sector. I'm not really thinking of litigation or the like. From that point of view, does it seem more worthwhile?

[TheBigMediocre]

Thanks for the reply and most of that does make sense to me. However, I should have been more specific. I'm thinking of doing something along the lines of estate planning or more in the financial sector. I'm not really thinking of litigation or the like. From that point of view, does it seem more worthwhile?

It sounds like what you really want to do is wealth management. Stay econ, get great greats, get some work/community experience, then go to B-school.

[boricuaman]

Being a CPA is a particularly great advantage if you are interested in tax law. Experienced lawyers will tell you that the best tax lawyers are generally CPAs as well. CPAs are generally best equipped to handle a lot of very technical issues in taxation matters and are generally extremely detail oriented. Tax lawyers who arent CPAs usually get an LLM in taxation to bolster their credentials given how competitive the field is.

[270910]

Being a CPA is a particularly great advantage if you are interested in tax law. Experienced lawyers will tell you that the best tax lawyers are generally CPAs as well. CPAs are generally best equipped to handle a lot of very technical issues in taxation matters and are generally extremely detail oriented. Tax lawyers who arent CPAs usually get an LLM in taxation to bolster their credentials given how competitive the field is.

It's possible this advice is true for some fields, but does not comport with many of my experiences with tax law.

[TheBigMediocre]

Read the NYU Tax LLM threads on xoxo if you want a depressing picture of their job outlook.

[dosh142]

Thanks for all your replies. I'm still trying to figure out what I want to do with my life (going to be a junior and currently a math and economics major).

[thebookcollector]

I think it is a wonderful combination, and I'm doing it myself. I do think it helped with admissions (mostly on the scholarship side), and there was an article linked on ATL earlier this week talking about the CPA-JD career path.

I spoke to one CSO director at at T25 that said a CPA would have a "significantly better chance" at OCI in certain fields than others. I haven't gone through OCI yet, but she explained that it demonstrates maturity and ability to function in a professional environment.

[dosh142]

Can you direct me to this article?

[crazycanuck]

This is what I've been told too.

And a CPA (or in my case CA) is a great designation to have in general. You have so many options available to you.

[wutwutwut]

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