The American Institute of CPAs announced the five recipients of the 2011-12 AICPA/Accountemps student scholarships.

The annual award is offered to undergraduate and graduate accounting majors who plan to become CPAs and demonstrate academic excellence and exceptional leadership.

This year’s recipients are:

•    Raheem Farishta, Master of Science in Accounting, Texas A&M University

•    Janine Haveman, Master of Science in Accountancy, San Diego State University

•    Jared Lindberg, Masters of Science in Accountancy, Western Michigan University

•    Trisha Phadke, Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance, University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign

•    Sarah Rayfield, Master of Science in Accounting, University of Virginia

The recipients were chosen from more than 464 applicants who must have maintained a minimum GPA of 3.0 and completed at least 30 semester hours of college-level coursework—with six in accounting—to be eligible.

“These scholarship recipients illustrate the remarkable caliber of people who will be the world’s future CPAs,” said Jeannie Patton, AICPA vice president for students, academics and membership. “Their zest and zeal for the profession, their education and their communities is inspiring, representing the essence of what it means to be a CPA.”

A task force of representatives from the AICPA and specialized finance staffing service Accountemps selected the recipients based on their applications, academic performance, essays and letters of recommendation.

“Together with the AICPA, we are excited to honor Raheem, Janine, Jared, Trisha and Sarah,” said Andrew Denka, executive director of Accountemps. “They each have shown they are dedicated to excelling in their education and career.” 

The application deadline for the 2012-13 AICPA/Accountemps student scholarships is April 1, 2012. For more information about this and other programs, visit www.aicpa.org/scholarships.