TL;DR
• We analyzed 163 Big 4 audit and tax intern profiles across Deloitte, PwC, EY, and KPMG. They came from 146 different schools. No single university contributed more than 3 people.
• 84% were accounting majors. 53% had done at least one prior accounting internship, and half of those were at a local CPA firm or a company's finance department.
• School prestige was a non-factor. Tier 3 schools (outside the top 100) made up 50% of the cohort. This is the most school-agnostic path in our entire 2,500-profile dataset.
• Beta Alpha Psi or a business fraternity showed up in about a third of profiles. Leadership programs (Deloitte Discovery, EY Launch) appeared in only 11%.
• 22% of Big 4 internships started in January (busy season), not summer. Two entry windows, not one.
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How We Got This Data
This article is part of a larger study where we analyzed 2,500+ LinkedIn profiles of students who landed internships at 28 top firms across investment banking, consulting, Big 4, and tech. But this piece zooms in on the Big 4 audit and tax cohort specifically.
We pulled 163 publicly listed profiles of students who held audit, tax, or assurance internships at Deloitte, PwC, EY, or KPMG starting in 2024, 2025, or 2026. Then we looked at what each person had on their profile roughly 9 months before the internship started, which is when offers are typically extended. Every number is an aggregate. No individual profiles are shown.
What Did Big 4 Interns Have on Their Resume at Offer Time?
The average Big 4 audit or tax intern had 1.70 prior internships when they got the offer. 85% had at least one. Just over half had two or more.
| Cohort | Prior internships (mean) | Had 1+ | Had 2+ | Had accounting internship | Accounting major | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All Big 4 | 163 | 1.70 | 85% | 51% | 53% | 84% |
| Deloitte | 42 | 1.67 | 79% | 52% | 50% | 81% |
| PwC | 24 | 1.46 | 88% | 46% | 38% | 88% |
| EY | 55 | 1.31 | 71% | 38% | 36% | 76% |
| KPMG | 42 | 1.95 | 79% | 60% | 52% | 83% |
Big 4 Intern Profiles at Offer Time: Firm Comparison
Percentage with at least one prior internship and one prior accounting internship
The four firms look remarkably similar on most metrics. KPMG interns had slightly more prior experience (1.95 vs. 1.31 at EY), but the differences are small enough to treat the Big 4 as one cohort for practical purposes.
Where They Did Their First Accounting Internship
This is the part that surprises people.
Among students who had a prior accounting internship, the employers weren't what you'd expect:
• Company finance and accounting departments: 121 instances. Think: accounts payable at a regional hospital, bookkeeping for a local business, a finance rotation at a mid-size manufacturer.
• Local and regional CPA firms: 102 instances. Small offices with 5 to 50 people. Filing tax returns, reconciling accounts, learning QuickBooks.
• Government and nonprofit: 14 instances. City treasurer's office, university accounting department, IRS VITA volunteer.
Not a single brand-name employer on that list. And that's the point. Your first accounting internship can be at a place nobody outside your zip code has heard of. What matters is that you touched real accounting work and can talk about it in an interview.
If you're looking for that kind of first experience, here's what's open in finance right now.
Does Your School Matter for the Big 4?
Almost not at all. And we don't say that lightly.
Our 163 Big 4 interns came from 146 different schools. That's nearly one school per person. No single university contributed more than 3 people. The most represented? Fordham, UT Austin, Florida State, Texas A&M, Missouri, Brooklyn College, North Texas, Indiana Kelley, and UC Santa Barbara. State accounting programs and mid-size private schools across the board.
Here's how that compares to the other industries in our full study:
| Industry | % from tier 3 (outside top 100) |
|---|---|
| Big 4 audit and tax | 50% |
| Software engineering | 23% |
| Data science | 20% |
| Investment banking | 16% |
Half. Half of Big 4 interns came from schools outside the top 100. In investment banking, it's 16%. So if you're at a school that doesn't show up on any "target school" list, the Big 4 is where the data says your school matters least.
The Four Things That Actually Showed Up on Their Profiles
Job postings say "strong analytical skills" and "attention to detail." Helpful? Not really. Here's what actually appeared on the profiles of people who got in.
An Accounting Major (84%)
This is the closest thing to a hard requirement in our data. 84% of Big 4 audit and tax interns were accounting majors. In audit specifically? 89%. Tax? 86%.
The exception? Advisory and risk. Only 36% of advisory interns were accounting majors, with the rest spread across finance, economics, and business. But advisory was just 7% of the cohort. For audit and tax, an accounting major is very close to table stakes.
And 37% were pursuing or had completed a MAcc or MST, typically to meet the 150-credit CPA requirement. Common, but not universal.
One Prior Accounting Internship (53%)
Just over half had done at least one accounting internship before the Big 4 offer. And as we showed above, those internships were overwhelmingly at small, local employers.
Worth noting: 47% didn't have a prior accounting internship at offer time. It's not a hard gate. But it's the single biggest experience differentiator between those who had more on their resume and those who didn't.
Beta Alpha Psi or a Business Fraternity (31%)
About a third of profiles listed Beta Alpha Psi (the accounting honors society), Delta Sigma Pi, Alpha Kappa Psi, or another business fraternity. Third most common signal after the major and a prior internship.
BAP serves a dual purpose: it's a recruiting pipeline (Big 4 firms recruit directly through BAP chapters) and a signal that you're serious about accounting as a career. If your school has a chapter, join it.
A Big 4 Leadership Program (11%)
Only 11% of Big 4 interns had previously attended a firm's sophomore leadership program. The rates varied:
• Deloitte (Discovery): 21%
• EY (Launch): 20%
• KPMG (Rise): 10%
• PwC (Start): 4%
These programs recruit sophomores and give early exposure to the firm. They're useful for building a relationship. But the data shows they aren't a prerequisite. Nearly 9 out of 10 interns got in without one.
How Do the Four Firms Compare?
| Firm | Prior internships (mean) | Had 1+ | Accounting internship | Club/fraternity | Leadership program | Tier 1 | Tier 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deloitte | 1.67 | 79% | 50% | 31% | 21% | 7% | 43% |
| PwC | 1.46 | 88% | 38% | 42% | 4% | 12% | 42% |
| EY | 1.31 | 71% | 36% | 35% | 20% | 5% | 60% |
| KPMG | 1.95 | 79% | 52% | 26% | 10% | 12% | 48% |
Leadership Program Participation by Firm
Share of interns who listed a Big 4 sophomore leadership program before their internship
The biggest difference? Leadership programs. Deloitte and EY lean on them much more than PwC and KPMG. PwC Start is either underreported on LinkedIn or genuinely less weighted in their pipeline.
But otherwise, the four firms are strikingly similar. All draw heavily from tier 3 schools (43% to 60%). All value the accounting major above everything else. If you're deciding which Big 4 firm to target, the data says your profile will be competitive at any of them.
Two Entry Windows, Not One
Something most guides don't mention: 22% of Big 4 internships in our data started in January, not summer. These are busy-season internships, typically 8 to 12 weeks during the heaviest audit and tax filing period.
The cohort broke down by service line:
• Audit and assurance: 47%
• Tax: 41%
• Advisory and risk: 7%
• Other/unspecified: 5%
If you missed the summer recruiting cycle, January is a real second chance. And some firms recruit for winter internships on a different, later timeline. Don't assume it's over because summer apps closed.
What You Can Do Right Now
The Big 4 path is the most accessible in our dataset by school, and the most concrete in what it asks for. The movable levers are clear:
• Get one accounting internship. Anywhere. A local CPA firm, a company's finance department, a VITA tax clinic. Half of the people who had one did it at a place with fewer than 50 employees. It counts.
• Join Beta Alpha Psi if your school has a chapter, or another accounting or business organization. A third of admits had this on their profile.
• Look into leadership programs if you're a sophomore. Deloitte Discovery and EY Launch recruit early, and the acceptance rate is higher than you'd think.
• Consider the January window if summer recruiting has passed. 22% of interns took this route.
And if you want accounting or finance experience you can start this month, an externship gives you a 4-week, mentored project with a real company for your resume. Explore finance externships here.
FAQ
What GPA do you need for a Big 4 internship?
Big 4 firms don't publish hard GPA cutoffs, though 3.5+ is a common screening baseline. In our analysis of 163 Big 4 interns, the dominant credential was an accounting major (84% of admits), not a high GPA or a prestigious school.
Do you need to go to a target school to get a Deloitte internship?
No. Our Big 4 cohort came from 146 different schools. Tier 3 schools made up 50% of the entire group, and Deloitte specifically drew 43% of its interns from outside the top 100. This is the most school-agnostic career path in our dataset.
Is Beta Alpha Psi required for a Big 4 internship?
Not required, but common. About 31% of Big 4 interns listed Beta Alpha Psi or a business fraternity. It's the third most common signal after an accounting major and a prior internship. BAP chapters often have direct Big 4 recruiting relationships.
What is a Big 4 leadership program, and do I need one?
Programs like Deloitte Discovery, EY Launch, KPMG Rise, and PwC Start recruit sophomores for early firm exposure. Only 11% of Big 4 interns listed one. Useful for building a relationship early, but not a prerequisite for the internship itself.
Can I get a Big 4 internship without prior accounting experience?
Yes. 47% of Big 4 interns in our data had no prior accounting internship at offer time. Having one helps, but a strong accounting major, club involvement, and certifications like MOS Excel or Bloomberg Market Concepts can compensate.
Methodology: This analysis is part of Extern's study of 2,500+ intern profiles across 28 leading firms. The Big 4 cohort includes 163 publicly listed LinkedIn profiles of students who completed audit, tax, or assurance internships at Deloitte, PwC, EY, or KPMG in 2024 through 2026. "At offer time" = experiences that began 9+ months before the internship start. School tiers use established target-school lists. All figures are aggregates; no individual data is published.
Bifei Wang has spent 17 years focused on human flow and the growth of young professionals, spanning international education, career training and coaching, and recruitment process outsourcing. Over 7 years at Extern, he has had one-on-one sessions with thousands of students exploring careers in consulting, finance, tech, marketing, and data, giving him a firsthand view of how the job market has shifted for early-career professionals and what it actually takes to break in.
About the Author
Bifei Wang has spent 17 years focused on human flow and the growth of young professionals, spanning international education, career training and coaching, and recruitment process outsourcing. Over 7 years at Extern, he has had one-on-one sessions with thousands of students exploring careers in consulting, finance, tech, marketing, and data, giving him a firsthand view of how the job market has shifted for early-career professionals and what it actually takes to break in.
