The question generally came to mind of each of the CA aspirant after clearing IPCC is “How to Apply Articleship in Big 4? Big 4 in a way, created brand image for themselves – and doing articleship training with them is much sought after. Usually Big 4 prefer rank holder of IPCC or lastly students who have cleared both group with good marks and obviously in 1st attempt.
Ways to Apply in Big 4
In CA Curriculum after completing IPCC, a CA Student is required to undergo 3 years of Articleship training under a Chartered Accountant. Out of these 3 years of articleship, 2 years of articleship are mandatory required to be served under a Chartered Accountant in practice. However, in the last year of training, a CA student may either continue his training under a chartered accountant in practice or enroll himself for training under a chartered accountant in employment. Training under a Chartered Accountant in employment is called Industrial Training. With the following ways we can apply to Big 4 to gain articleship.
1) ICAI BoS Articleship Portal
Students for articleship may visit to http://bosapp.icai.org to get the information about the companies who placed their requirements to have articles. The Board of Studies (BoS) have introduced an optional Articles Placement Scheme for selection of Articled Assistants by CA Firms.
The scheme has been evolved to provide an opportunity to the firms of Chartered Accountants having vacancies for Articled Assistants to interact with the candidates who have either (a) Passed Group-I or both Groups of the IPCC examination , or (b) have been admitted under the Direct Entry Scheme and are eligible for undergoing articled training for selection as articled assistants in the C A Firms. There is no fee charges either from participating CA Firms or from registered students on the portal.
2) ICAI Notice Board
Many times Big 4’s puts their advertisement of requirement for articleship on the local ICAI office notice board. So, one can apply through this mode mentioned in such advertisement.
3) Direct Apply to Big 4
It is often wiser method to apply directly to Big 4 offices. It is advisable to to get the contact number of such firms and speak out with Articleship recruitment department, take their time and deposit your application form and resume directly to them. In some firms, you may connect to HR people to guide you for the proper channel.
4) Application through Email.
You can apply for the articleship by mailing them your application form and resume through email. But, their are least chances that Big 4’s reply to you for your email.
5) Reference
Last and Important mode to apply for Big 4’s is that if you have any good contact or CA who is working with such firm then that may be good route to apply.
Big Consultancy Firms
In India, the Big 4 group is a tag for the Big Consultancy firm on a worldwide basis. However from the articleship perspective, one should remember that each of such firms have different CA firms associated to them. Articleship aspirant would be doing articleship in these CA firms.
Now, these CA firms may have the same name as the Big 4 or may have different name. So for example one of the Firm related to E&Y is SR Batliboi & Co etc, similarly one of the CA Firm attached to KPMG is BSR & Co, for Deloitt one is AF Furguson & Co. In PwC, the firms attached go by the name of PriceWaterHouse and Lovelock & Lewis. Even PriceWaterHouse is not one firm – but there are 7 to 8 different CA Firms in different cities in India that go by this same name of PriceWaterHouse. So PwC in Gujarat may be pretty different than that in Delhi.
Such firm in India is such big form attached with a firm may be proprietorship or partnership firm having 10 to 15 partners, but there may be 50 to 60 Chartered Accountants working under them
Another thing to remember, that while in a Big 4 firm, at a place there may be 10 to 15 partners, and there may be 70 to 80 CA employee working under them results in big hierarchy. So as a article assistant you may not even able to meet your principal.
Another way to Link with Big 4
Apart from doing the ‘normal’ articleship in one of the CA firms attached to Big 4, there are other ways also:
1) As per ICAI, one can take training under a CA who is an employee in a CA firm. So, if the Big 4 firms allows, then one can do articleship under any of the CA employee of such Big 4 firm.
2) During last year of articleship, One can do industrial training in the Big 4. As the Big 4 is the private limited consultancy company, so eligible for providing such industrial training by ICAI.
READ Too: Guidance To Find CA Industrial Training
Selection Process in Firms
The usual way of inducting an Article is interview. In big firms there may be two levels of interview – HR interview & Partner level interview. In other firms it may be the partner directly taking interview. If you have worked previously with any CA firm, and the CA knows you well, he would not need to take your interview.
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