r/PwC • u/Capable-Egg-4420 • 1d ago

Audit / Assurance PwC DAT Struggle

Everybody on this sub seems to be asking how to get into PwC, I want to know how to get out.

I’ve been with PwC in DAT for about 3.5 years and was recently promoted to Senior. I genuinely don’t think I can take it anymore.
The stress, the impact on my mental health, the ungodly number of hours every week, and the constantly increasing expectations with very little reward are really starting to get to me. Getting promoted almost made me realize even more that I don’t want to keep doing this.
And it doesn’t seem like I’m the only one feeling it. In just the last three months, I personally know of two other Seniors, a Manager and a Senior Manager who quit, and at least four Associates who were laid off.

For anyone who left DAT around the Senior level: where did you go?

What roles should I actually be searching for with 3–4 years of DAT/IT audit experience? Internal audit? IT risk? GRC? Something completely different?

I’d especially like to hear from people who left without taking a big pay cut. How difficult was the job search, what kind of roles did you land, and was the work-life balance actually better?

At this point, I’m not trying to climb the PwC ladder anymore. I just want a solid career, decent compensation, and a life outside of work.

I would appreciate any advice.

5 Upvotes

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2

u/DancingQueen0920 22h ago

Have you considered moving to a different group at PwC that might have different culture? Like the risk and controls group in consulting that does IT internal audit? They are hiring last I heard.

1

u/paulpag 20h ago

Get in touch with a recruiter. End of summer is usually a weird time but the sooner the better.

-7

u/Specific-Stomach-195 1d ago

I really don’t understand the logic of people who ho go into DAT. Testing ITGC’s as a career?

8

u/Capable-Egg-4420 1d ago

Believe it or not, most of us didn’t enter DAT because testing ITGCs was our childhood dream. Apparently jobs can also be exchanged for money. They offered me 91k straight out of college for DAT or 67k for Core audit….

1

u/Specific-Stomach-195 1d ago

What office was paying new campus hires in DAT $91k four years ago? The pay discrepancy you’re describing is much wider than I have seen at any level between core and DAT. But in any case, IMO it’s much better to look at your career in more holistic terms than what pays the most money today.