u/Ok_Schedule_7363

From what I've heard a Masters in Accounting consists of nearly all international students trying to get residency.

Also, from what I see on LinkedIn I see a lot of people who have moved to Australia to commence a Masters than to have access to the local job market. I don't think this is a good thing provided how there is already an over saturation of entry level accountants. Not to mention the housing situation.

What does everyone else think of the situation?

I've been applying heavily for over a year now, I get a good amount of interviews, as well as call backs and teams meetings. Over a year I haven't been able to land.

For some context I've been working as a call centre agent for 2 years now.

My best experience is working for 2 years as a bookkeeper. I also have a degree in accounting. Other than that I had a graduate accountant role that lasted only 3 months, long story short down to team dynamics.

I really want to get back into the field, but its been so formidable. Should I keep going or just give up?

For a week now I've been getting this dull ache around the gum area. A week a go it bled from flossing, now it has stopped bleeding. However, the past few days I've been getting dull aches around the area.

For the past couple of nights or so, this dull ache has been making it hard to full asleep, however, warm water and salt method has been helpful. It has gotten better over the last few days. However, last night it was stubborn, rinsed my mouth out with warm water and salt twice last night and the pain took a while to reduce enough.

A few days a go there was a red line on the gum around the tooth, the gum around the teeth still looks slightly red.

Yesterday during the day, I don't get I had any pain in the area, but last night it just decided to be a bitch.

I am just seeking people's honest opinion about wherever I should stay in accounting or pivot. My situation is, I've been applying for over a year and I've had a few short stinks, with the expection of working two years as a bookkeeper.

My last accounting job two years ago, which was a graduate position only lasted three months. Long story short, I don't think the middle manager agreed with the hiring decision and thought I was a bit too long out of the game and pretty much pushed me out of the place.

I've even had at least a couple of people telling me to accept the market's verdict or just move on from accounting, because I'm currently not getting any luck.

However, I'm still applying a few bit, but I've just been trying to look more specifically for accounts payable and am trying to find time to do more cold calling.

I can only hope things turn around for the better.

My situation is I have been working in a call centre job for almost two years. I left a grad accounting position before my current role, due to the work place environment.

I've been applying for accounting/bookkeeping roles heavily for a year now. I get interviews from time to time and had a couple of close calls already. I've even had a few people basically tell me the market place has had its verdict and I'm better off trying in something else. Due to me graduating in 2018 and having some short stinks and my best accounting role was being a bookkeeper for 2 years. I'm starting to feel defeated by trying to get back into accounting.

I was just thinking instead of giving up altogether, maybe to do further study, could be a masters or even repeating a Bachelors and starting again.

Any advice?

I graduated in 2018. I have worked a few accounting jobs.

However, I haven't worked in accounting since 2024, long story short, I ended up in a toxic work enviornment and ended up leaving. A few months later I took up a call centre job, which I'm still in now.

I've been applying a lot for about a year, I've close reasonably close to getting something, but haven't quite reached the mark. My best experience is working as a bookkeeper for nearly 2 years.

I've had a couple of people tell me I should give up. This isn't the most detailed post, but I hope it gets straight to the point.

There appears to be issues with Australia at the moment from increasing housing costs, a lack of social cohesion and just some people feeling the country doesn't appear the same as it once did.

For the past 30 years or so Australia has had a very high rate of immigration, increasing the population from 18.3 million in 1996 to around 28 million in 2026. With the current year of 2026 having a population born overseas around 32%, which is much higher than countries such as the UK 19% of people born overseas, the US 14%, New Zealand around 28%.

As most of us are aware the rapid population growth, driven primarily from immigration has given has a housing crisis. Not to mention other factors high population growth might cause such as competition for jobs, wage suppression, which don't seem to get mentioned as much. Compared to the past generation there is more adults who are unable to buy a house at the given time, spend more time in traffic, probably face more competition for jobs.

I'm aware there are other factors such as the rate of construction, interest rates, capital gains tax, wealthy people owning multiple properties. However, there are practical limits to how quickly housing can be built, and interest rates cannot be kept excessively high without creating other economic problems. Just how common would these wealthy people who own multiple properties would be?

My situation is I find it difficult to find employment in the field I studied for and I won't be putting a mortgage on a house in the near future. That makes me wonder whether the government should place greater emphasis on improving outcomes for existing Australians before continuing with high levels of population growth. It seems that Australians have been getting left behind to make room for newcomers. Do you believe that the government needs to do more to put Australians first?

This story happened about two years ago now.

I was in a toxic work environment for a government job in 2024, so I texted this accounting firm over the weekend who had been in contact with me before in relation to any possible accounting positions. They texted back nearly straight away on the Saturday, than I either later on the Saturday or the Sunday they texted me back they emailed me a job offer. They wanted me to start a week later, despite having to leave my current job at the time and it being an hour and a half drive away. The last week at the current job I used a couple of days annual leave to move closer and get ready for the next job.

Just to add some context that accounting firm randomly downloaded my CV off seek and called me up for an interview about a year and half prior to these events in early 2023. At that time they decided to go with a basic admin person instead. Fast forward in August 2023 they texted me to offer me the bookkeeping job. At that time I took too long to accept the offer because I was unsure about the commute so they went with someone else.

Fastforward to mid 2024 to me texting them over the weekend and finally accepting a job offer from them. Started a week later despite having to move 3 hours away and than having to do an hour commute. Worked there for a month all seemed good, got a long with the colleagues.

A month in I had my one month review meeting which was to be expected. The middle manager than suggested they were looking into possible additional training or termination of employment. The excuse was a minor mistake made in the accounting software, which was easily fixed. Also the middle manager made another excuse saying I was late 5 times which is a failure of time management, than contradicted himself it wasn't really a big deal. The reality was I was only late about twice due to traffic, which I called the middle manager prior to the start time. At the end of the meeting the middle manager said I will find out the outcome most likekly tomorrow. I said to him I would rather know the outcome here and there.

A couple of hours later the middle manager said I was terminated as of immediately and I had to hand the key and walk out the door. I tried to text the partners who hired me to talk about whats going on, they blocked my number. I was totally unexpecting that, it was out of thin air.

After that happened they advertised the position a couple of days later, with a pay rate that was outside of my experience level. I ended up finding out on LinkedIn they hired a senior bookkeeper to replace him, I'm at an entry level. Turns out that senior bookkeeper only lasted a few months. I also found out by their site they had multiple staff members come and go and even a couple of long term stuff left about close to a year after I left.

I cold called an accounting firm last year in July 2025, only last week I got an email from HR asking if I was interested in a bookkeeker/junior accountant position, I replied saying I was so HR called me and than was able to book an interview in on Friday last week.

The interest went alright, it was straight to the point and brief, the interviewer seemed more interested in knowing about things like hobbies, because he said he could already see whats on my resume.

I got an email today saying something like this:

Many thanks for taking time to visit us or the interview last week.

 

You came across as a strong candidate for a graduate accountant working towards intermediate level which we feel, the role will limit your growth.  This position will involve more Bookkeeping and less than 50% of junior accounting opportunities.

 

Unfortunately, I cannot proceed with your interest for this position, but I will keep you posted on other accounting position that may come along.

I have next to no public accounting experience, I only have 2 years of bookkeeping experience at a golf club. Other than that I only have a couple of short term roles, including 6 months casually assisting a one person accounting firm and another role that only lasted 3 months as a graduate accountant position. I have been working as a call centre agent for almost 2 years now, moved to the city sometime last year for more opportunities. Based on these details, I wonder why that came to that conclusion?

I just don't get it, they seemed to think I had all the skills and they called me nearly a year after I cold called, they don't seem to have advertised the job anywhere.

I wonder why they made that decision? Maybe just a straight junior accountant/graduate accountant role will come up?

 

My manager is currently away for a few days. Today I was suddenly scheduled for an half an hour feedback coaching meeting tomorrow. No other team member got scheduled for an half an hour feedback coaching session. For some reason I feel a little anxious. I perform well at my job. Should I be worried?

One of my referrence, the person who hired me in one of my past jobs about 4 years ago, has always given me a glowing review, even helped me get hired at one place. I have kept in contact with my reference in the past and him seemed happy to keep in contact.

However, over the last year the communication has started to drop. He did text me last year that he had a newborn and had been busy, that was after the last time we spoke on phone. However, over the last few months the communication seems to have died down. The last time he responded to my text was 3 months ago asking where I applied and how my interview went.

I texted him in February asking if he would be happy to read my up to date CV, where I used an AI platform to improve it. Also, than in late March saying I have an interview tomorrow, so response in these two months.

I'm just a little confuse to why the communication has died, he hired me and I did a good job and lasted two years even through he left three months after I started. Also, I kept in contact and caught up time to time. Am I overthinking this, or is this a sign I should stop reaching out?

One of my referrence, the person who hired me in one of my past jobs about 4 years ago, has always given me a glowing review, even helped me get hired at one place. I have kept in contact with my reference in the past and him seemed happy to keep in contact.

However, over the last year the communication has started to drop. He did text me last year that he had a newborn and had been busy, that was after the last time we spoke on phone. However, over the last few months the communication seems to have died down. The last time he responded to my text was 3 months ago asking where I applied and how my interview went.

I texted him in February asking if he would be happy to read my up to date CV, where I used an AI platform to improve it. Also, than in late March saying I have an interview tomorrow, so response in these two months.

I'm just a little confuse to why the communication has died, he hired me and I did a good job and lasted two years even through he left three months after I started. Also, I kept in contact and caught up time to time. Am I overthinking this, or is this a sign I should stop reaching out?