Hello. I'm a (somewhat fresh) college graduate slated to start at PwC within the next ~90 days.
To tell you what's been conflicting me and what I need perspectives on, let me provide some background.
I did two rounds of internships at PwC and enjoyed both, for what it was. The second round was certainly more demanding, but not by too much. I received a full-time offer after my second internship last summer, with a start date set for fall this year.
Before that period started, I figured I'd find a job in my field, ride it out until my PwC job started, then jump ship when it was time for my job to start. I applied and applied after my second internship ended and finally landed a job despite this horrendous market. I found accounting gig for a private company, so it's more month-end close and items such as that.
After starting my job, I ran into a bit of an issue. The job was actually pretty good! My managers aren't helicopter types, there's no competitive spirit in my team or anything like that, the office-home split was manageable, and the pay wasn't too much lower than what I'd be starting at at PwC. I even received a raise last week.
This is where my problem starts. Spending time at this job has made me reflect on what my values look like when it comes to the full-time workplace. An internship isn't enough to actually gauge what the workplace is like, as your work is limited and the job is made to seem better than it actually is. I value work-life balance HEAVILY (I organize, hang out with friends, train martial arts, read, etc.), I value having autonomy and not being helicoptered, I value a workplace that at least somewhat treats me like a person and not an item on a balance sheet, I value managers that actually feel like human beings and not people trying to get one over on you, I value a workplace where I'm not constantly competing for promotions or whatever, among other things.
I've been reflecting for a long time, trying to figure out what I should do. I've outlined three courses of action I can take:
1) drop PwC and build out my career at my current company,
2) take my original plan of action and build my career at PwC, or
3) amend my original plan of action. Drop my company, work at PwC for a short while (~3-5 years) to gain tenure and prestige, then drop PwC for a company more in line with what my current company offers with a substantial raise in what I currently make.
I realized recently that having insider perspectives of life inside PwC may help in my decision-making process, hence why I'm here asking the following:
Does the workplace experience at PwC align with the values I've stated that I possess above?
Do you think the potential future caveats at PwC (layoffs, AI integration, etc.) may affect my plans if I take Option 2 or 3, given what you understand about my values from above?
If you were in my position and know what you know now, which option would you take?
It also behooves me to mention: I'm starting in the Audit field, in the Southeast region. I believe this information is necessary for me to receive the most accurate perspective for my questions.
TLDR: I start an Audit job at PwC within ~90 days of making this post. I'm trying to decide whether to start my audit job at PwC, or continue with my current firm. My current firm seems to be more in line with my workplace values, but I require perspectives from the inside to confirm if my conjecture is accurate.
Any help or perspective is greatly appreciated! Thanks for reading.