(2027 Bachelor's/Master's graduates) Accounting/Business/Finance Consulting Analyst/Associate

About this role

<p>If your background is in <strong>Accounting</strong>, <strong>Business Administration</strong>, or <strong>Finance</strong>, learn more about opportunities at CRA!</p> <p><strong>About Charles River Associates</strong></p> <p>Charles River Associates is a leading global consulting firm that provides economic, financial, and business management expertise to major law firms, corporations and governments around the world. CRA advises clients on economic and financial matters pertaining to litigation and regulatory proceedings, and guides corporations through critical business strategy and performance-related issues. Since 1965, clients have engaged CRA for its combination of industry experience and rigorous, fact-based analysis that provide clients with clear, implementable solutions to complex business concerns.</p> <p>Practices seeking to hire candidates with this profile include (hiring locations listed):</p> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.crai.com/finance-practice/">Finance</a> (Chicago) <ul> <li>Our Finance experts work on valuation issues (shareholder class actions and other corporate valuation disputes), as well as matters focused on the functioning of financial markets and institutions (alleged market manipulation and insider trading).</li> </ul> </li> <li><a href="https://www.crai.com/services/intellectual-property/">Intellectual Property</a> (Chicago, Houston, New York) <ul> <li>Our Intellectual Property team provides expert witness testimony regarding economic damages as well as non-litigation consulting services including valuation and compliance for all types of intellectual property to assist clients in achieving their strategic and financial objectives.</li> </ul> </li> <li><a href="https://www.crai.com/services/transfer-pricing/">Transfer Pricing</a> (Oakland) <ul> <li>The Transfer Pricing group works with multinational companies to understand their global value chain and international tax structure, and delivers IP valuations, tax structure reorganizations, tax compliance documentation and litigation assistance.</li> </ul> </li> </ul> <p><em>Learn more about our work by reviewing our Services and Industries on our <a href="https://www.crai.com/">website</a>.</em></p> <p><strong>Position Overview</strong></p> <ul> <li>Work alongside, and in a collaborative environment with, talented and diverse colleagues, including PhD-trained economists, finance and accounting professionals (CFAs and CPAs), and valuation experts;</li> <li>Conduct economic and industry research while analyzing client materials to build an understanding of a case’s issues;</li> <li>Perform/develop financial and economic analyses or valuation models to support case theories and present those results to colleagues and clients;</li> <li>Program, build models, and perform regression analyses using languages such as Excel, Stata, R, Python, SQL, or SAS;</li> <li>Investigate accounting irregularities and respond to allegations of fraud, misconduct, waste, and abuse;</li> <li>Use your accounting and financial skills to prepare analyses of financial data, including financial models, for litigation and expert reports and testimony;</li> <li>Investigate and analyze financial evidence, including financial records and transactions, to identify trends and anomalies, and clearly and concisely organize and summarize your findings;</li> <li>Leverage your database skills to effectively analyze large data sets;</li> <li>Communicate with team members, clients, and other professionals, to share investigative and analytical findings, and assist with the drafting of written reports to summarize procedures performed and findings.</li> </ul> <p><em>Check out our blog about</em><a href="https://www.crai.com/cra-careers/career-blogs/?keyword=typical%20day&page=1"><em> a typical day at CRA</em></a><em> and how you can make an </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBrZUyLZGz8"><em>impact</em></a><em>!</em></p> <p><strong>Desired Qualifications</strong></p> <ul> <li>Bachelor’s or Master’s degree candidates graduating in December 2026/Summer 2027 with an academic focus in Accounting, Business, Finance, or related field;</li> <li>Solid working knowledge of finance, accounting, and economic methodologies;</li> <li>Command of a broad range of research and quantitative analysis skills (including strong Excel skills);</li> <li>Familiarity with generally accepted accounting principles, corporate governance, and regulatory environments;</li> <li>Experience in gathering, standardizing, and analyzing voluminous transactional data;</li> <li>Experience in data analysis and intelligence gathering, including querying and mining large data sets to discover transaction patterns, examining financial data, and filtering for targeted information;</li> <li>Curious and analytical thinkers who bring creative approaches to non-standard problems;</li> <li>Effective written and oral communication skills;</li> <li>Demonstrated high level of initiative and leadership;</li> <li>Demonstrated attention to detail and commitment to producing accurate, high-quality work;</li> <li>Strong teamwork and collaboration capabilities;</li> <li>Excellent time management and task prioritization…