Queens Chapter Sponsors Career Day for High School Students

By Thomas Boyd, Queens Chapter President-Elect and Career Day Event Coordinator

The Queens Chapter, in conjunction with the Department of Accounting and Taxation at St. John’s University, held its second annual Career Day, on Dec. 8. Over 180 high school juniors and their teachers attended the event.

Despite the first snowstorm of the winter (on Dec. 5 and 6), which blanketed New York City with over a foot of snow, these students and teachers made the trip to the St. John’s campus. Together they represented six high schools in Queens, Brooklyn and Manhattan that are all part of the Academy of Finance.

The Academy of Finance operates throughout New York City targeting students interested in business education. The New York State Society of CPAs has a long relationship with the Academy and has held many presentations, including tours of local accounting firms. The NYSSCPA’s Promoting CPA Careers Committee helps coordinate these events.

The objective of the Queens Chapter in co-sponsoring the Career Day was to provide high school students with information on what a CPA does and the many career opportunities in the fields of accounting and finance, and to explain to the students what the education requirements are to enter the accounting profession, and expose them to college life. An important component of the event was to provide the students with an understanding of college admission policies and the many sources of financial aid that are available to them.

Upon arrival, the students were met by 23 St. John’s University students, all members of the Accounting Society, NABA and Beta Alpha Psi (the honor society for accounting students). These college students spent the entire day with the high school students, attending sessions with them, eating lunch together and giving them a tour of the campus. They visited classrooms, computer labs, athletic facilities, the library, cafeterias and, of course, the dorms.

The college students shared what it is like to study accounting and their experiences as accounting interns and gave the high school students some insight into college life. The SJU students participating in the program were given student membership in the NYSSCPA, compliments of the Queens Chapter.

The students and teachers began the day with a continental breakfast and a welcome from the coordinator of the event. The high school students were then gathered into four groups and, accompanied by St. John’s students, attended four thirty-minute sessions, on careers in accounting; careers in finance; education requirements for CPAs; and college admissions and financial aid.

Professionals working in the field conducted the two career sessions. They included a fifth-year accounting student who is working as an intern with PricewaterhouseCoopers. She was able to talk about her college experiences, why she chose to major in accounting and her experiences as an intern with an accounting firm. She told them that she liked taxes and was pursuing a Master of Science Degree in Taxation. She received her Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting after completing four years of study. She intends to take the CPA exam in the near future and work in the tax department of PricewaterhouseCoopers.

The remaining two sessions dealt with the education requirements to become a CPA and the process of college admission and available financial aid. Dr. John Newmann and Dr. Sylwia Gornick reviewed the current and future education requirements to become a CPA. They distributed the NYSSCPA brochure “How to Become a Certified Public Accountant in New York State.” Diego Lopez, from the SJU Admissions Office, described the process of college admission and outlined available financial aid.

Dr. Adrian P. Fitzsimons, Chair of the Accounting Department, and Prof. Mary Maury of the Accounting Department, both former high school teachers themselves, gave the teachers a separate program. They presented the education requirements and career opportunities in accounting.

The 150-hour education requirement to become a CPA, soon to become effective in New York state, has presented an opportunity to St. John’s to offer a variety of programs. These include combination bachelor’s and master’s degree programs and dual majors. Students have the opportunity to get a BS degree and an MS or MBA in accounting or tax in five years. If they prefer, they can get a bachelor’s degree with dual majors in accounting and their choice of finance or management information systems.

A campus tour given by the college students culminated the day’s events. The college and high school students got to know each other, and there were many happy faces on the youngsters at the end of the day. It was a productive event, and gave many young students something to think about: a career in accounting.

Thomas Boyd can be reached at tmboyd38@hotmail.com.