Students on the Blog: Lessons from an Accounting Intern

By Tingting Luo (MS Quantitative Methods and Modeling ’19, and holder of an MS Accountancy degree)

In fall 2018, I had the opportunity to work as an Accounting Assistant Intern at an apparel company. Although I was doing basic accounting work, the experience taught me a lot. From this job, I learned how an entire company operates and the skills needed to be an accountant.

At first, I recorded different invoices from vendors and customers, and used Excel to analyze the  company’s financial operations. As an intern, I was treated just like full-time associates, and got assigned actual and meaningful tasks that were crucial and beneficial to the company. Being in the financial department, I handled a lot of accounts which demanded skill sets not taught in the general accounting curriculum in school. Hence, this was challenging at times when I was faced with a new account which I had not seen before. However, colleagues were always ready and willing to give their advice and guidance to help me overcome these challenges.

Secondly, I gained deeper insight into the accounting industry, which has helped me significantly with my career planning. I developed a better understanding of the career path of an accountant through the internship, helping me to make better informed career decisions.

Now, I am studying for the CPA exam and will try my best to pass all four exams. When I finish this internship, I will focus on my exams and apply to big four firms. In my future, I want to be a financial accountant. After a few years, with much work experience, I can possibly launch my own company.