"The Power of Positive Thinking" by Staff Accountant, Rachael Creger

When I was a student at UofL I was gifted a copy of Norman Vincent Peale’s The Power of Positive Thinking. It collected dust on my shelf like most non-school books, and then got thrown in a box when I graduated and moved out of my apartment by campus. This past week, over a year since boxing up all my possessions after purchasing my house, I finally started to unpack my boxes of books. I stumbled upon this gift and flipped right to that day’s page. I’ve continued the habit of checking my book nightly before bed and something about last night’s quote, "Always maintain hopefulness, especially when the going is hard," really spoke to me.

College is a tough time, recruiting season is a tough time, and tax season is a tough time – if I’ve learned anything through college and the beginning of my career, it is that a little bit of positivity goes a very long way when the going gets hard. One bit of positivity that gets me through the most stressful of days is knowing that when I get home, I won’t have to do more work, unlike college and the seemingly never ending reading to do or projects to complete.

One of the hardest parts of my second tax season was leaving work, sitting through a 3 hour night class, going home and studying into the wee hours of the morning and attempting to pull myself together and do it all again the next day. One of the highlights of my third tax season (third?! That’s weird to say!) is that when I finally shut down my computer at the end of the night and went home, I didn’t have to worry about cramming for my finance exam, or squeezing in an online quiz before midnight.

So many people through my life have told me that college prepares you for the real world, but after a mere 15 months in the “real world”, I’d like to dispel that myth. Yes, college does prepare you for some of the knowledge you’ll need in your career, but the two are so different. My little nugget of positivity for you is that eventually, at the end of all the late nights and coffee-fueled study sessions you can trade all of that in for an amazing career at a company you love where you will still be consuming large amounts of coffee but where it will all finally be worth it!

Every all-nighter, every tear shed over the regret of procrastinating, every $300 textbook will be worth it someday! I rest easy knowing that I worked my butt off for 4 long years to get my dream job at an amazing firm. So hold on tight, because these next few semesters will be hard and busy and overwhelming at times, but I promise that someday you will look back on your college experience and be so glad that you filled your time with late night study sessions and tax season internships. Good luck this recruiting season and good luck with the rest of your career – college & otherwise.

 

 

"Life After 22 - The Non-traditional Student's Guide to Recruiting Season." by Staff Accountant, Jackie Bach

Greetings Students! My name is Jackie Bach, I’m a first year Staff Accountant here at Monroe Shine, and I’m excited to have the chance to dole out some nuggets of wisdom acquired from my time spent making the transition from (constantly struggling) non-traditional student to (only sometimes struggling) new staff member. My hope is that by the end of this post you’ll feel a little less panicked, a little more confident, and a lot more excited about tackling the upcoming challenges the next few months have to offer. Buckle up you guys, recruiting season is officially upon us!

For those who don’t know, recruiting season is comprised of resumes, socials, interviews, and more accounting-themed swag than you ever thought possible. It’s stress, excitement, and anticipation all balled up into a mad scramble for the perfect internship. It’s like the Hunger Games but for accounting nerds and the prize is a coveted spot on a prestigious team where you can finally see some of the things you’ve learned put into action. Simply put: It’s kind of a big deal.

As arguably one of the most important times in a new accountant’s career it’s easy to imagine that the typical college student dedicates a substantial portion of their time to preparing for, attending, and following up on a myriad of events. This, of course, is in addition to the time spent worrying, revising a resume 843 times, and trying to iron every pair of dress pants you own at the last minute because you didn’t take them to the drycleaners like your mom told you. Regular students must contend with these standard recruiting season hurdles on a nearly daily basis; however, there is an ever growing and often under-represented demographic of students that are met with additional obstacles despite making up a large portion of the eligible recruiting base. These students are non-traditional students.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, non-traditional students are defined by one of seven characteristics: delayed enrollment into post-secondary education; attends college part-time; works full time; is financially independent (for financial aid purposes); has dependents other than a spouse; is a single parent; or does not have a high school diploma. This can also include students returning to college for career changes or enhancements. I was a traditional student when I got my Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and I was a non-traditional student when I went back two years later to get my certificate in accounting and ultimately my Master’s degree. The difference between the two experiences was like day and night - no, literally, I took night classes all through the certificate and Master’s programs.

It’s easy to feel alienated when going back to or starting college at a different stage in your life. You’re probably older than everyone (except your fellow nontraditional students), your expectations are different, even the way you learn has evolved and that’s just the changes in the CLASSROOM. Additionally you have to face the constant everyday conflict between your life obligations and your educational obligations! Kids, a spouse, bills, work, a water pipe that decides to bust as you sit down to take a quiz, or a neighbor’s dog that has the uncanny ability to sense when you sit down write a paper and proceeds to bark for FOUR. HOURS. STRAIGHT.

So now, amongst all the difficulties that come with being a non-traditional student, it’s recruiting season. You’re officially in competition with your peers and other candidates from other schools. It’s go time, and the pressure to perform tends to come with it’s own arsenal of ways to tear apart your confidence and commitment. But you’ve got this! If you can survive all of the things listed above then you can most certainly come out on the other side of recruiting season unscathed and hopefully even employed!

If this is your first recruiting season (or second, or third…) here are just a few common misconceptions, things you can expect, and (hopefully helpful) tips and tricks to help get you through:

• You will NOT be able to attend every single event every single time. And that’s okay!
• My first recruiting season was filled with absolute dread when I looked at the schedule of events. I was working full-time and most, if not ALL, events were always during work hours or would be over by the time I got out of work. I never felt like I could ask to leave early either - I mean really, how do you justify asking, “Hey, mind if I leave early to go to an accounting social in an attempt to pursue other potential employers?” Doesn’t quite sit right, does it? If you have the ability to go to an event or if you have an employer that understands then absolutely go for it! If not then don’t sweat it! I promise that there will be events that you can attend and most firms even hold their own events after hours that are open to students.

• You WILL get selected for an on-campus interview and inevitably the only times left will be times when you are at work.
• This one can be a bit tricky. While schools have made huge strides in making a lot of programs more accessible to non-traditional students this is generally one area that continues to fall short. The simple solution is to take a personal day or some personal time out of work but realistically that’s not always an option for a lot of non-traditional students. If you find yourself struggling to find a way to make the interview times work reach out to the contact provided by the firm. Many firms will be understanding of your specific needs and are willing to make some special accommodations.

•  “Why would I waste my time with recruiting season? I don’t need an internship, I need a JOB.”
• I hear you loud and clear, my friend. Once you get to a certain age or a certain point in your life you’re used to being gainfully employed and having life obligations that have to be met (Netflix ain’t gonna pay for itself, am I right?). The thought of downgrading to something that isn’t set in stone just to possibly further your career can be terrifying. Here’s the good news: recruiting season isn’t just about interns! Because of the comprehensive career placement offered by most schools now, a lot of firms also recruit for full-time staff positions during recruiting season. Don’t worry about knowing everything as a first year staff either, you’ll be just as clueless as the interns and that’s to be expected.

• “It’s taken me forever just to get to this point, why would a firm even want me?”
• Chances are, if you’re like me, accounting wasn’t necessarily your first choice (Marine Biology - don’t judge me). Maybe you got your bachelor’s degree in something else, didn’t like it (or use it) and wanted a change. Maybe instead of going to college right away you went into the workforce instead. Maybe you didn’t have the opportunity to go to college or the time wasn’t right. Whatever the reason may be, you’re here now. The thing that really sets you apart from your peers is the level of commitment you have to being here right now despite all of the difficulties you have faced and will continue to face. You went out into the world, saw all the things it had to offer, and you chose this. What firm wouldn’t want that kind of passion and dedication?

I’d love to tell you that it gets easier but at the end of the day we’re all passengers on the same old struggle-bus. What I will tell you is that you shouldn’t give up because you are on track to have an amazing career. If you stick with this you will get to work with some of the most amazingly talented and informed professionals ever (shout out to my Monroe Shine work family!). You’ll find a sense of fulfillment and purpose in your work. You’ll be driven to learn more and achieve more than you ever thought possible. You’ve already worked so hard and made it this far - take it all the way! I’ll tell you what I always tell myself: if it was easy, it wouldn’t be worth it.

~ Jackie