I want OUT of AWM tax
I’m a first gen college graduate, I worked extremely hard to land a job into nyc office but I want out. I’m 8 months into AWM Tax, and I’m starting to question whether the tradeoff between hours, comp, and long-term upside is worth it.
I don’t mind working hard, but I’m not seeing the payoff in career growth or compensation that I expected.
For anyone who started in AWM Tax:
Where did you exit?
What roles are realistic after a year?
Which exits have the best long-term comp upside?
Can you pivot out of tax without starting over?
Would you stay 2–3 years or start recruiting around 1 year?
What skills should I build now (Excel, modeling, valuation, SQL, more certs like SIE,etc) to improve optionality?
I’m trying to understand the actual career map I didn’t know when I chose accounting. I worked very hard to get here and want to use it as a stepping stone, not waste it. Just trying to figure out what paths actually make sense from here long-term.
Any honest advice from people who’ve made this transition would be really appreciated.