NYSSCPA's COAP summer program offers $10,000 college scholarships for CPA hopefuls

This summer, the New York State Society of CPAs (NYSSCPA) will continue their Career Opportunities in the Accounting Profession (COAP) program, to be held at nine university and college campuses across New York State.

COAP is a three-to-five-day summer program that introduces young people – namely, those who have been underrepresented in the accounting profession – to the possibilities of becoming a CPA. Students are housed in dormitories, fed at college cafeterias and participate in business and personal development courses that include mock interviews, resume tips, and visiting businesses to see the day-to-day life of a professional.

In past years, COAP attendees have taken trips to Jay-Z’s Roc Nation record label; Supreme Chocolatier, a Staten Island candy manufacturer and retailer; and New Era Cap, official baseball cap supplier for Major League Baseball and the National Football League.

Costs for each student’s meals, transportation and housing are paid in full by the NYSSCPA’s non-profit educational initiative, The Moynihan Fund, which provides funding for COAP and the Society's annual college academic scholarships.

The program targets high school juniors, but senior or sophomores may also be considered.

This year, COAP will be held at nine college campuses across New York with more than 20 students at each site. Campuses include:

• Adelphi University: Saturday, June, 25 - Wednesday, June 29, 2016
• State University of New York (SUNY) University at Buffalo: Sunday, June 26 - Thursday, June 30, 2016
• SUNY University at Albany: Monday, June 27 - Wednesday, June 29, 2016
• Long Island University – Brooklyn: Sunday, June 26 - Thursday, June 30, 2016 (tentative)
• Pace University – Manhattan: Saturday, June 25 - Wednesday, June 29, 2016
• St. John’s University – Queens: Sunday, June 26 - Wednesday, June 29, 2016
• Rochester Institute of Technology: Sunday, June 26 - Wednesday, June 29, 2016
• Westchester Community College: Monday, June 27 - Thursday June 30, 2016
• SUNY at Oswego: Sunday, June 26 - Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Participants in the COAP program are also eligible to apply for a COAP College Scholarship, which provides $2,000 per year, up to five years, for students studying accounting at a college or university in New York State with the goal of becoming a CPA. The program has graduated more than 3,500 students since its inception in 1987.
Furthermore, on May 19 at Chelsea Piers in New York City, the NYSSCPA will host an inaugural fundraiser - The Moynihan Fund Gala – a black-tie (optional) social with all proceeds going towards The Fund, which aims to expand the number of students participating in COAP and increase the number of scholarships given each year.

Applications for the COAP program are available now; the deadline to apply is May 18.

For more information on COAP, head to NYSSCPA's site here or email questions to coap@nysscpa.org.