Staff Accountant (Business Administration, BBA)

Scott Carson, Ernst & Young

Scott Carson graduated in the fall of 2009 from Laurier with an Honours Bachelor of Business Administration degree. Through the course of his studies, he gained excellent accounting experiences through the co-operative education program, which ultimately lead him to his current career at Ernst & Young in the Kitchener office as a staff accountant in the Assurance Division. Within this role, Scott assists with preparing working papers for the various accounting engagements he is assigned to.

Leading up to his current position, Scott gained accounting experience with a medium-sized firm, which gave him a wide variety of tasks such as completing notice to readers, review engagements, audits, corporate and personal tax returns, bookkeeping services, as well as a wide range of miscellaneous tasks requested by senior partners. Most of the accounting engagements were small, privately owned corporations or not-for-profit organizations. Scott values the time he spent at a medium sized accounting firm as it provided him with a diverse cross-section of accounting tasks and equipped him with thorough tax knowledge. Presently with Ernst & Young, he exclusively performs auditing tasks with very large private and public companies and much of his work requires travelling to many cities across South Western Ontario to interact with a wide range of people. During busy season, the minimum amount of chargeable hours in a week is 50, but depending on the client it can increase to a lot more. Therefore, potential students should be aware of the long hours required in this field during high season. Scott highly recommends targeting small to medium sized firms first, given the opportunity to be exposed to diverse accounting tasks, however, the larger firms provide exceptional training and guidance for completing and passing the UFE process as well as the opportunities for advancement in a larger firm are greater.

Scott highly recommends the co-op program for students pursuing an accounting designation, or any career for that matter. Equally important to gaining relevant paid employment, is participation in volunteer and extracurricular activities. Scott participated in varsity men’s soccer for four years, along with numerous other intramural teams. Scott believes that playing on a varsity team allowed him to develop skills that have assisted his career in such ways as teamwork, time management, leadership, and hard work to name a few. He comments “I would definitely recommend trying to part of teams throughout university, as you gain valuable skills that will help you when entering the work world that cannot be taught in a classroom. They are also a great way to meet people, build your network of connections and offer a nice break from studies. There are many clubs and teams which you can get involved in at Laurier, as chartered accounting firms look at individuals with a diverse resume. They want well rounded individuals.”

Scott’s words of encouragement for those students seeking a career in accounting are: “talk to individuals who are in the field to gain a greater understanding of the work involved. Individuals who are team players, word hard, are polite and personable and strive to succeed and learn new knowledge are a good fit for the accounting field. I would recommend the profession to anyone who wants a new challenge every day at work and likes to continue to grow and learn and be part of a team.”