3rd Annual Summer Leadership Program Introduces Students to Accounting Profession

White Nelson Diehl Evans hosted its 3rd annual Summer Leadership Program held at WNDE’s Irvine office and the nearby Second Harvest Food Bank on July 26-27. The event gave 21 Southern California college students who are interested in careers in public accounting the opportunity to meet WNDE’s professional staff and learn about the type of work in which WNDE interns and staff engage. The ultimate goal of the program is to give WNDE management the opportunity to identify and recruit future interns.
To participate, students were required to submit a resume, cover letter and transcripts. Selected students were then interviewed, and the best candidates were invited to participate in the program. In 2018, 104 applications were submitted (up from 51 in 2016 and 70 in 2017), 47 were granted interviews, 23 were offered the opportunity to participate and 21 accepted.
WNDE Managing Partner Paul Treinen noted that there was a significant increase in the number of interested applicants in 2018, and added, “The Summer Leadership Program has become an important tool for us not only to recruit future interns but to increase awareness of the WNDE name among accounting students at local colleges.”
The average GPA among participating students also increased to 3.56 in 2018, up from 3.22 in 2017. The schools attended by the 2018 participants included Biola (3 students), Chapman (4), Cal State Fullerton (5), Cal State Long Beach (3), San Diego State (1), UCI (2), UC San Diego (2) and Lipscomb University (1). Participants included one senior, nine juniors and 11 sophomores. There was a 2:1 female to male ratio, with 14 women and seven men participating.
After the two day event, one participant said, “The program allowed for a better understanding and feel of the firm’s culture.”
Another participant observed, “I had such a great experience learning more about the firm and a career in public accounting. I left the program with valuable knowledge I did not have before walking through your doors.”