Financial Advisory to Tax

Hey everyone,

I’m currently working in Financial Advisory (CFP) and am also pursuing my Master’s in Accounting.

Initially, I was pretty set on specializing in tax, but lately, I’ve been finding myself more interested in the audit side of the house. However, I don’t want my advisory background and CFP knowledge to go to waste.

I'm curious if those of you in the industry—specifically at Mid-Tier or Big 4 firms—have seen specific service lines within Audit/Assurance that benefit from a financial planning or advisory lens?

A few things I’m wondering about:

• Employee Benefit Plan (EBP) Audits: Does this utilize much "wealth management" or fiduciary knowledge?

• Financial Services Audit: Do those of you auditing hedge funds, PE, or insurance find that an advisory background helps with understanding the underlying assets/structures?

• Accounting Advisory Services (AAS): Is this too far removed from traditional audit, or is it a good "middle ground"?

I’d love to hear from anyone who made a similar pivot or anyone in audit who works alongside people with CFPs/Advisory backgrounds. Is it possible to bridge these two worlds, or are they truly parallel tracks?