I hate to admit it- in fact, I am sure I will regret putting it down in writing: I am a USF Bulls fan. Don’t get me wrong, much love for my Alma Mater FSU.  I have the heart of a Seminole.  I appreciate the community I was and am privileged to be a part of (I did find my wife there after all), I appreciate the quality education FSU offered me,  and I appreciate where my degree has gotten me to today.  But (the USF football program aside- last weekend is a blur), the more time I spend with the students and faculty at USF the more I recognize what this educational institution has to offer: especially to accounting students with the same aspirations to join and excel in a career with a Big 4 accounting firm.

Among the highlights, students graduating USF’s accounting program boast one of the highest CPA exam passing rates in the country (currently around 15% nationally for first time test takers passing all four parts [caveat: me being one of them from FSU]).  USF also houses an internationally acclaimed Beta Alpha Psi accounting honors society program that my company (Ernst & Young) networks with on a regular basis as a key resource in identifying quality recruiting candidates.

I don’t see myself giving up the Garnet and Gold any time soon.  But don’t be surprised when you see me around with a bit of Green to show my support for the USF Bulls.

On a related note: The USF Career Fair kicks off tomorrow, October 1st at the Sun Dome from 10am – 3pm.  If you are an accounting student of any year at USF and would like more information on where a career in accounting can take you…and what opportunities beyond financial auditing and tax are available, chat me up at the Ernst & Young booth!

Just a quick recruiting message for career seeking accounting professionals to look out for me and the rest of the Tampa office Ernst & Young Advisory practice recruiting team on the Florida State University, University of Florida and University of South Florida campuses this semester.

In addition to our many opportunities across the globe, I am specifically looking to identify a number of individuals for our Media & Entertainment industry focused practice within our Tampa office.  Talk to me in person about this opportunity at the USF Career Fair on 1 October 2009.  Also, contact me at joe (dot) bailey (at) ey (dot) com for more information.

See for yourself why Ernst & Young has been consistently named one of the Top 3 “Best places to launch a career” by BusinessWeek magazine!

ATTN: Business and Accounting students in the Tampa Bay Area!

I will be on campus at the University of South Florida in February to present on the opportunities at Ernst & Young.  Specifically, I and other Ernst & Young representatives from the Tampa office will be providing information on our Assurance and Advisory practices and will be available to field any questions regarding our industry.  Please feel free to attend the following presentations as well as learn more about the professional student organizations available at USF:

Wednesday, February 4: hosted by the USF Chapter of Beta Alpha Psi
@ USF (Room TBD), Time 4:30 – 6:30 PM

Thursday, February 5: USF Career Network Fair
@ USF Sundome, 10:00 – 3:00 PM

Thursday, February 12: hosted by the USF Chapter of the National Association of Black Accountants
@ USF Marshall Center (Room 2702), 5:00 – 6:00 PM

Please feel free to contact me with any questions.