Life as a UConn Accounting Major

Hi Anthony Here!

When I entered into my Junior year at the University of Connecticut I knew this was going to be my toughest year yet. This was the first year that the majority of my classes were going to be from my major. This year has also taught me that with hard work you can achieve great success.

When I first started my college career I was introduced to all the different majors that the University offers, and as a member of the ACES department I was ready to explore everything. Always having a strong background in math I thought business was a good choice for me. Freshman year I started to take different business classes and I really enjoyed them, but it wasn’t until my second semester when I took Financial Accounting with Professor Kochanek that I found my passion for Accounting. Accounting involves taking your math skills and using them to interpret and solve problems. This is something that really interested me. I liked starting with a whole bunch of numbers that didn’t balance and working towards balancing out the two sides of the balance sheets by using different problem solving and math skills. It is like a giant puzzle that with the right amount of time can all come together.

After the first Accounting course I started to take more to make sure this really was what I wanted to major in. The next class was managerial accounting, which focuses on the inner workings of companies and doing internal reporting. This class introduces you to concepts such as creating and achieving goals, making sure everything is on track, and the accurate reporting of internal information within the company. This really opened my eyes to a different field of accounting and this is a field I could picture myself getting into. Now this semester I am taking my Intermediate Accounting I and Federal Income Tax course. These are more challenges in comparison to the lower levels, but you are continually learning something new and everything sparks my interest in the field more and makes me want to go out there and start working.

To be an accounting major from day one you need to know that you and the library are going to become good friends. Not only will the library be friends, you want to make sure you have a group of friends within the major. Most of the material you see is brand new and it is difficult, but when you have a group of friends that you can do the work with it makes it easier. You do not always have all the answers to questions, and sometimes the one you can not figure out is the one your friend is best. In classes like Federal Income Tax where everything is foreign it is great to take a group of people and just work through it together.

The Accounting major is difficult but it is not impossible. I find myself always doing homework and always having to study for something, but the hard work pays off. One of my favorite things is to get rewarded for the work I put in. Sometimes I want to just stop studying and lay down in my bed and relax but I know that with that little bit of extra work I can get an A and I can feel accomplished.

One reason I wanted to major in accounting is because of my strong work ethic and ambition. I also like to challenge myself and with this major I find I can do all these things.