manager

senior consultant

senior accountant

consultant

staff accountant

PROS:
- GREAT company values, lots of fun work perks (a pretty good and flexible fitness benefit, for eg), and many great firm socials.
- The environment is pretty pleasant, and you will probably develop a great professional network of ambitious co-workers and wise mentors!
- It seems like there is a huge rate of participation in the firm teams, groups, etc., and a generally high level of pride in the company. 
- A sketched out path of progression (promotions) within all factions.
- At the very least, you will learn A GREAT AMOUNT, and make a lot of amazing friends.

CONS:
- This may be typical of the industry, but the length of your workday/workweek varies significantly between the seasons (specific to business cycles of your main clients) - for eg, I worked ~70 hour weeks for 3 months on end (probably 2-3 holidays in total over this period).
- The concept of overtime compensation doesn't exist (at least for co-ops), and this leads to undercompensated work. It's very easy to lose motivation.
- A (sometimes unreasonable) expectation from you to "work-from-home".
- The teams you're deployed as a part of can vary significantly in terms of how welcoming/accommodating/fun they can be. This can lead to a very stressful environment given the long hours.
- For beginners, there is also a concern re: the large variance in the level of support (in terms of coaching) provided by teams (employees are almost always promoted to "Senior Accountant"-level, even though there is a large discrepancy in their coaching skills - the promotion is largely determined by their passing of the CFE).

A lot of calendaring for my executive and some of the other senior level employees. 
External and internal meetings as I worked in Advisory Services. This was a very FAST paced environment. 
Here I learned to enjoy the fast pace and really time manage. 
We submitted a lot of proposals so I am very familiar with editing/polishing powerpoints etc. for presentations to C-suite externals.
the hardest part of the job was making sure everything was done by deadline and so that put a lot of stress on me. It was my first job out of university so I really value the time I worked at EY for I was taught and learned on my own how to handle high pressure situations.

The most enjoyable part of the job was when we won a bid and I knew that I helped contribute to that success.

Management and procedures were very organized and there was room for growth. This place was not hypocritical in their values and they did provide growth for their employees. 

Co-workers were either really great to work with (regarded me as a friend and co-worker) regardless of what level. OR they were hierarchical and I did not like this. It was quite a big organization so I didn't get the tight family feeling I receive most times at CPPIB.

Worked here for 5 years in their IT department. After 2.5 years they globalized IT. My manager changed and suddenly what used to be a nice place to work wasn't all that nice anymore. Would show up for work, do my work and go home. The perfect work/life balance as once you leave work you wipe your hands clean. Management was horrible as my manager failed to manage people properly. Just because you worked for the same company for 25 years doean't mean you have what it takes to be a manager. I will stop there as there's just too much to talk about. One word is micromanagement.

The hardest part of the job is knowing that no one moves around in the IT sector of the company unless someone leaves or someone dies. If you are in any department other than Core Business Services (CBS) you're in good hands. All my manager wanted me to do was sit at my desk and do my work and go home. No encouragement for taking courses other than stupid online web based ones which only benefit the company itself. For the people that fall under CBS, good luck getting a raise when another recession comes along as people outside CBS got a raise and people within got shafted. My fault as my lazyness kept me working here for another 4 years.

The difference between everyone else and CBS.
Jr. Staff Accountants become managers in 4-5 years
IT Analyst in still an IT Analyst in 5-6 years

If you don't work in CBS working here a few years will do you justice. If you work in CBS, god help you.

The level of attrition within the industry is staggering. I can only speak to myself and my close friends and colleagues, but everyone felt overworked, underpaid and generally excited to exit the firm into industry. Expect an average work week of 55+ hours. Summer hours can be more acceptable (40 hours) unless you have a client going through a special transaction and/or summer fiscal year end. 

Due to regulatory and client commitment deadlines, you must be able to work under extreme levels of pressure. Due to the levels of attrition, teams often feel understaffed and thus the burden falls on those that remain. 

It's important to note that accounting was not a passion of mine and thus likely contributed to  my poor experience at the firm. Although, you will find very few people that are truly passionate about the industry and/or job. 

The firm does it's best to provide you with adequate training but the majority of learning will be done on the job. If you have a supportive manager then you will have necessary guidance to survive the engagement. If that is not the case, you will often find the job quite frustrating and draining trying to navigate your assigned tasks. 

With that being said, there is a fairly strong sense of unity within the firm as everyone is enduring the same conditions together. You will likely be able to find yourself some life long friends while working at EY. 

Working as an Assurance Associate at EY is a highly rewarding yet demanding experience that provides exceptional professional growth, especially early in your career. The role offers strong exposure to real business environments, complex financial statements, and a wide range of clients across different industries. You quickly develop technical accounting knowledge, audit methodologies, analytical skills, and attention to detail. EY places significant emphasis on learning and development, providing structured training, access to resources, and mentorship from experienced professionals. The team environment is generally collaborative, and many colleagues are supportive and willing to help, which builds a strong sense of community.
However, the workload can be intense, particularly during busy season when long hours and tight deadlines are common. Work-life balance can be challenging at times, and the job requires resilience and strong time management. Compensation and benefits are competitive for an entry-level assurance role, but many feel it could better reflect the workload. Despite the challenges, the role is an excellent stepping stone for a career in accounting, finance, or auditing, offering strong career progression, valuable experience, and a globally recognized brand on your resume. Overall, EY is a great place to build a solid professional foundation.

The main issue is a industry problem in general. There are a lot of engagements/projects to manage ate the same time and most of the time, overtime is required. In addition, some projects are sold below the real capacity to deliver the work, so people need to work long hours but they either don't charge what they actually work, or need to clarify every additional penny to the client, which also creates difficult conversations about who pays the bill and how that's impact the company's revenue and margin. To complete, some people are not fully engaged on the projects or doesn't care and just let managers to figure out how to solve all the problems (and I mean very tiny small problems). At a senior level, it's expected that they can lead the engagements, solve problems, lead teams,  manage their own time in different engagements, and deliver the work w/ the minimum quality required. However, that doesn't happen, so mid-managers get swamped w/ senior's work (doing their senior's work sometimes), manager's work and senior manager and partner's requests.  At the year-end, even if you're above average, you're classified as "in progress" in the same category as some people that are under-performing, which demotivates working so long hours and winning new clients to get a small bonus and pay rise.

Working for a firm among the big 4 has its pros and cons. EY is a very big name and formidable experience to have on your CV. However, you should watch out when choosing to work for the big 4. They overwork and milk their employees till the last drop. 

The pay is very very average, considering the cost of living in Montreal.

Overall 3/5 experience.
 It’s an environment where there are high expectations and high standards which is a very good aspect. Colleagues are mostly numb and talk to you only when something is needed from you (outside of your team). 

Management can be very cold and dry depending on the person. 

Hours are decent although LUNCH IS NOT PAID, so you at work for 9 hours instead of 8. 

They do have amazing benefits but it doesn’t compensate for the amount of work and high pressure that is expected.

If they see that your workload is manageable, they won’t hesitate to fill your cups until it floods the whole building, so be careful when answering the question of “how’s your workload ?”

Overall 


I worked here as a clerk for a year. It was the most hostile work environment I have ever worked in. The management team consisted of 5 lawyers and 4 managers, all of whom were female. It was difficult to work under 9 female managers, especially when there was clear animosity between said management. Staff were treated like minions, working overtime consistently and being scrutinized when overtime was submitted to management for review. But not working overtime resulted in management considering you to be a poor, lazy worker. The people who thrive in this environment are people who do not care for a work/life balance, have little regard for other human beings, and have robotic like tendencies. Not a fit for you if you are mostly human and care to have a social life. 
 
Most clerks I worked with complained of anxiety, stress, and even depression on a consistent basis. 

Toxic horrible place to work.

Excellent Top 5 consulting firm. Located Globally around the world. 

Ernst & Young (known as EY) is a multinational professional services firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It was the third largest professional services firm in the world by aggregated revenue in 2012 and is one of the "Big Four" audit firms

The organization operates as a network of member firms which are separate legal entities in individual countries. It has 190,000 employees and more than 700 offices in over 150 countries. It provides assurance (including financial audit), tax, consulting and advisory services to companies

The firm dates back to 1849 with the founding of Harding & Pullein in England. The current firm was formed by a merger of Ernst & Whinney and Arthur Young & Co. in 1989.[9] It was known as Ernst & Young until 2013, when it underwent a rebranding to EY. The acronym "EY" was already an informal name for the firm prior to its official adoption

You get more experience than you would working in easy 9-5 jobs but it comes at the cost of long work hours, working over weekends and even holidays. 

Pay is not competitive in Finance roles when compared to other companies. But working for here is comparable to going to a prestigious school, once you're done with it you'll have a really big name to back you up.

There is a focus on work-life balance but it is all bluff and not real. If you work your 40 hours a week you're seen as lazy and same if you take advantage of working from home. The culture is work extended hours regardless if there isn't any work to get through.

Work politics are a big part of this firm, network yourself well and you'll move up quickly and you'll have a good time working. But do the opposite and you'll hate what you do.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Manager 29 salaries reported	$117,069 per year
Senior consultant 36 salaries reported	$100,611 per year
Senior accountant 22 salaries reported	$78,091 per year
Consultant 22 salaries reported	$79,318 per year
Staff accountant 8 salaries reported	$65,500 per year

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