Q: Big4 - Yearly salary increment

Originally Posted by Unregistered

they sent out comp statement today - s4 getting 5k

Damn diff between A2 and S1 $450 only hahahah no wonder so many wan zao

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Damn diff between A2 and S1 $450 only hahahah no wonder so many wan zao

So blue difference is $450?

Orange difference is $400 only…

what is the updated salary for all A - M levels?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

My batch (all the males) gotten our admission to local Uni at 2016. After 2 years of our NS, the admission criteria for local uni dropped significantly in 2018...
We heard of people entering the local uni at the last minute after appealing with lower JC points/Poly cgpa. You know what is the best part of ISCA story? For those with prior to 2022 graduation, all of us do not have SCAQ exemption and have to take 5 PP modules to get accredited as CA. The next batch that graduated in 2022 suddenly can exempt modules due to new ISCA policy. Hello?? We are not angry, not frustrated. We have no say in this industry

Oh man really sucks for your batch. I can’t imagine studying hard, getting good grades and a university placing, only to discover after 2 years NS that the popularity plunged.

I’m not sure why the plunged happened between 2016 to 2018 if the SCAQ was introduced in 2013. Maybe some lag time between implementation and your seniors discovering this isn’t for them, and spreading the word of mouth?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Hello! I won't mind sharing some grandma stories using my cui english if got ppl dun mind hearing, haha.

Those days ah way before 2013, even in secondary sch, POA teachers were quite well respected, my humanities teacher would said things like "stop angering ur POA cher, they should be earning better elsewhere." May be because we are neighbourhood schs so POA was not really seen as 2nd class subject. Not sure now, hardly heard of POA but heard some ppl saying even neighbourhood sch dun even wanna offer POA as a core subject. Actually I felt POA is quite useful, its the most basic start of understanding basic finance leh, no harm doing it in secondary sch imo. I liked POA and dunno what to do, so did accountancy in Poly.

Back then in poly (before sqp/scaq implemented), we knew of getting into NTU/NUS/SMU Acc was need around AAA/B for A lvl and C.GPA 3.88/4 for poly grad to hit 10th percentile points to get a spot there, anything less than that will need interview w some profs. There were no SIT/SUSS/SUTD in those batch. Despite local uni degree can simply became a CPA sg with 3yrs experience and 5 day course, Accountancy/Audit were really quite a popular route to go for if 1 were not up for law/medicine and do not want to do engineering. Perhaps it was without SCAQ, that was why our degree worth so much more, unlike now it became so diluted. Can imagine from JC/Poly already how hard we got to work for our study to get into local uni accountancy, it was quite competitive and the same competitive ppl we will see in those unis. Our poly lecturer keep say till accountancy/audit as a career was damn good, heard the pay was considered good in those days and audit promised confirmed progression.

In NTU, we quite often see HCI and RI students doing double degree (Biz/acc) in the same class. For a neighbourhood sch kid like myself, dunno why but it felt quite surreal to be in the same team as them for projects. Surprisingly 1 of them I knew of actually went for audit in Blue. Other than those top scorers, most of us will go for audit thinking its the path for progression, even stay for 1 to 3 years also good which most did and then move on.

Imo the SQP(now scaq) was implemented too rush and set the bar too high back then. Can rmb, I just gotten my Uni conditional offer with my 5sem poly results and suddenly news came saying anyone who enrolled into uni the next year will need take SQP, grandfathering scheme by the 5day course will not apply to us. Suddenly it felt quite "betrayed", like why the effort needed exponentially increased when its alrdy so competitive. But I still decided to go uni take acc, if not do what, back then young and simple thinking lo. Along the way we heard of how tough SQP was, such as pass rate too low and not many ATOs means non-audit peeps wont even meet the requirement to be CA sg. Yet, we didn't seen much support (e.g. PP mods exemptions or much lesson providers or more ATOs) provided other than expensive difficult exams. SQP was not popular to us, we hardly talked about it and it seems like we were not even interested, I don't think I knew of any of my batchmates took up SQP/SCAQ.

Over the years SCAQ increased pass rates and support due to lack of application bah, more ATOs too. But it had to reach a point where we all know the various reasons (suppressed pay/overworked/rise of Comp sci post pandemic) accountancy goes downhill then ISCA/ACRA buck up to save this industry by its vague marketing and making SCAQ more manageable (e.g. recent exemptions/APP) for the larger mass who may find pursuing it while working may be too overwhelming mentally and financially. And for us the past batches, all these support seem a bit too late and will not apply to us. Nvm...

Did not regret pursuing local uni Acc degree back then, but I felt this industry needs to be more rewarding instead of being a sunset for foreign talent to do it cheaper. Perhaps it will get better for new gen with all these support/marketing from ISCA/ACRA. I'm currently supervising an poly acc intern, I donno to cry for her anot, felt like i'm being a bad influence to her if keep on tell her to think twice if wanna go this path, but I also should not be contributing to the shortage of talent pipeline or else no more ppl to hire. Hais.

Hey thanks for sharing! I want you to know I read the whole thing so you don’t feel like you wasted time typing all that. Where are you working at now after leaving accounting?

It’s nice but also a bit sad to hear how prestigious we used to be. I did try to Google but there isn’t a lot of information available on the pre-SCAQ days, I guess it’s all lost over time somewhere buried in the internet. Were you not eligible for the grandfathering thing?

The pass rates are now (relatively) quite high, would you consider trying to pursue it now?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Hey thanks for sharing! I want you to know I read the whole thing so you don’t feel like you wasted time typing all that. Where are you working at now after leaving accounting?

It’s nice but also a bit sad to hear how prestigious we used to be. I did try to Google but there isn’t a lot of information available on the pre-SCAQ days, I guess it’s all lost over time somewhere buried in the internet. Were you not eligible for the grandfathering thing?

The pass rates are now (relatively) quite high, would you consider trying to pursue it now?

Those 2013 already CA liao

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Agree but nothing will save this sunset industry.
Even b4 increase the pay / make fast track programs, OT still persist.
They are unethical to increase pay and blast on all news outlets but silently cut bonuses.

My friend fresh grad in accounting, got a 7k starting pay in fintech firm doing finance related.

u tell me how ISCA or b4 can fight that pay grade? My another friend M1 getting 7k. Now fresh grad 7k. LOL.

The problem is the more u market it, the more people will be disappointed when they realized it is a lousy industry.

The pay must be on parity with marketing engineering etc

Ideally at least 20% to 30% higher than engineers and HR for equivalent position

The salary must be 75% of medicine and law combined

Otherwise its hot air

Originally Posted by EDMWer

The pay must be on parity with marketing engineering etc

Ideally at least 20% to 30% higher than engineers and HR for equivalent position

The salary must be 75% of medicine and law combined

Otherwise its hot air

75% of average of medicine + law

Originally Posted by EDMWer

Those 2013 already CA liao

No leh… still got people that just never took the exams..

What is Yellow A2 updated salary?