What to do with a CPA

Hey guys! As the title says - idk what to do when I complete my CPA Exams. I am currently looking for a job - I am not going to work for a big 4 or fortune 500 company. It's going to have to be local to my town.

I found a very nice internal accountant job where I would be a staff accountant doing bookkeeping, AP and AR. And they can see my CPA license being good for their controller or VP position - but is this the way to go.

I did public accounting at a small firm - it was awful. And I dont see myself being in public accounting for 10+ years - AND as we all know a lot of these industry companies only want public accounting experience from big 4 firms (or at least in my area).

I just idk. I don't want to get a job that is useless with my CPA but idk what else I could do - and this market is awful.

If anyone has advice - TIA