I am considering making a move to public after having held an industry role for a year, specifically a move to IT advisory in the west coast w/ a large regional firm. I've come up with a few questions for which I need objective and non-biased answers/opinions.
1. What are some of the exit opportunities for IT audit/advisory? I know a lot of my friends have gone to work for IT and Internal Audit shops at F5s but I don't want to be a life-long auditor.
2. How long are the hours for advisory? I understand that hours in public are long, but how bad/many on an average inclusive of travel time?
3. Is not having public accounting experience really that limiting?
4. I want to maintain a healthy work-life balance, I don't mind the occasional 60-70s but what I don't want is to live to work. With that said, is the work life balance better at large regional/national mid-tier firms? Is work life balance better in advisory?
5. How difficult of a shift is it from advisory to audit, just in case I decided this wasn't a route for me? I currently hold a corporate accounting role and I think this would be a completely different turn for me. Would I be able to do corporate accounting again if I chose to later on in life?
Thanks in advance.