My first accounting job: Kristine “Tina” Caratan
Accounting was not Tina's first choice. But she came to see it as a cornerstone for business!
What is your current job?
I am currently in the process of graduating from my day job! I left public accounting 14+ years ago (where I specialized in not-for-profit) and started to consult to the not-for-profit sector, which I continue to do – though not at the level that I used to do it at. I also guest lecture at various universities throughout the US. I taught as an adjunct for 11+ years at two universities in the San Francisco Bay area but the rigor of having to be somewhere EVERY week was too tough to keep up. Guest lecturing gives me that same feeling of spreading the good word about accounting but without the rigor!
Did you major in accounting or come to it later? To CPA exam or not to CPA exam?
Yes, I majored in accounting. But that wasn’t my first choice. I started as a Math major as I wanted to work for the space program. After I received a “D” (and happy it wasn’t an “F”!!) in Calculus 1, I had to figure out my next stop. I thought History…. I thought languages. But a classmate looked at me and said (I kid you not!), “Major in something you can job in right after college since you might not get married right after.” It WAS 1971!
I picked accounting quite honestly through a process of elimination. Marketing seemed silly, management made no sense for an eventual 21/22 year old college grad. Finance seemed like I could only be a stockbroker. Economics (which I did end up minoring in) seemed to clearly require an advanced degree. Accounting became the last major standing!
If you major in accounting, I will say emphatically YES – take the Exam! You go through one of the most rigorous academic programs within any college of business so take the comprehensive Exam. They can never take that passage away from you and, with many states not requiring attest experience, getting licensed is not necessarily the hurdle it was in my pre-licensed days. Yes, the 150-hour requirement is a hurdle – but that, too, is potentially going away.
What was your first job using your accounting skills and education?
I finally received my one and only offer in August 1974 (two plus months after I graduated) from a small national firm called Lester Witte. They were based in Chicago but had a small office in San Francisco. I was the first woman hired by the entire firm at the staff level! My first couple of years I did about 50/50 tax and audit. Ultimately, I chose audit, but I attribute that mix of experience to my strong overall skills as a CPA.
How did you get it?
Fortitude, patience, and a career placement officer at my university who knew me and was saddened that I had yet to receive an offer. I went to the career office daily post-graduation and one day she had the job posting for the firm. I jumped on it instantly – though in those days it was all done by snail mail! The interviews were very interesting and maybe because I was tired of interviewing, I was relatively strong in my response when one of the partners who flat out said he would hire me except I was a woman!
That did not sit well with me, and I told him as such. My offer came on a Thursday night, and I started my job the following Monday!
What advice do you have for people considering majoring in accounting, considering whether to take the CPA exam, and considering how to use accounting education and skills?
Accounting is the cornerstone of everything in business; it is not a box that you become stuck in. While I have made a full career as an accountant, I also recruited, managed a practice, taught (both professionally and academically), consulted on a range of business needs, and became an NFP expert. The list is endless as to what I did and for that matter what I continue to do. If you are debating a major in accounting or finance, I would strongly advocate accounting. It is much more flexible as your career advances and as you can see – you can do anything!
© Francine McKenna, The Digging Company LLC, 2025