AICPA opens submissions for minority students' workshop

The American Institute of CPAs is asking qualified students to apply for its 2019 Accounting Scholars Leadership Workshop, an invitational program for minority college students planning to pursue a CPA designation.

For 25 years, the program has aimed to improve participants’ professional skills and understanding of the profession. This year, the all-expenses paid event will be held at the Hyatt Regency Denver Tech Center in Denver from May 15-17, 2019.

The application deadline in Jan. 21, 2019. The AICPA Foundation covers the cost of attendees’ transportation to and from the workshop location, hotel accommodations, training experience and meals.

“The ASLW has a well-established history of helping minority students understand the various career paths available in the accounting profession,” said Kim Drumgo, director of diversity and inclusion for the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants and vice chair of the AICPA National Commission on Diversity and Inclusion, in a statement. “Participants will learn what it takes to pass the CPA Exam and the steps necessary to make it happen. The workshop is also an opportunity for students to interact with accomplished CPAs and get honest answers to their most pressing career questions. And each year students leave the program inspired to start their journey to an accounting career, while the speakers and volunteers who attend are motivated to continue working towards their goals.”

The goal of the program is to give participants a sense of what life is like as a CPA. They complete a behavioral assessment and learn team-building and leadership skills.

Interested students must submit the application, a video essay, two letters of recommendation (with at least one from either a faculty member or a licensed CPA), an unofficial transcript, and a motivational quote. Sophomore, junior, senior, fifth-year or graduate students for the 2018-19 academic year who have declared an accounting, finance or tax major and who intend to pursue the CPA credential are eligible. They must also be student affiliate AICPA members, have maintained at least a 3.0 GPA, and be actively involved in campus and community activities.

The ASLW is open to ethnic minorities who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents. More information is available here.