Founded in 1993, the Master of Science in Accounting program at Rhodes is rooted in the college’s liberal arts and sciences tradition and boasts a 100 percent job placement rate, with a large percentage of graduates joining Big Four (Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG, and PricewaterhouseCoopers) and national CPA firms (e.g. FORVIS, CBIZ, Grant Thorton, BDO).
Dr. Wendy J. Bailey, director of the program, says that, when asking employers what they want from new hires, they often tell her critical thinking skills, communication skills, and a solid basis in accounting, but also being comfortable with learning new technology.
At the beginning of the school year, Rhodes holds a highly successful Meet the Firms event, with accounting firms, finance firms, and corporations on site to meet students with accounting-related career interests (accounting, finance, computer science, data analytics, etc.).
“This is really a kickoff to the accounting recruiting season,” said Bailey. “The big CPA firms will be there, as well as some of the local firms and some of the major corporate players such as AutoZone. The goal is for the students to meet with these potential employers and get to understand what their firm offers. At the same time, it helps the firms identify, especially if students are juniors or seniors, who might make good interns.”
This year’s Meet the Firms is Sept. 7, 5-7 p.m. in the Bryan Campus Life Center. Employers scheduled to be in attendance include Raymond James Financial, KPMG LLP, Deloitte, AutoZone, Mercer Capital Management, and Ernst and Young, just to name a few.
Students with business career interests in accounting, finance, or computer science especially are encouraged to attend and to bring their resumes.