Elisa Cabrera ’25, is one of Eberhardt School of Business’s most dedicated students. Already pursuing her master’s in accounting with a minor in computer science, she took on many other opportunities that the school has to offer. She was the CEO of the Student Investment Fund, the public relations director of the Delta Gamma sorority, and vice president of marketing for the Delta Sigma Pi business fraternity. 

“First, I was a little overwhelmed,” Elisa recounted, “but as I got into it a little bit more, I realized that there’s a lot of deep thinking and a lot of knowledge that I can retain, that I can actually use for my own personal life.”  

Earning two degrees at once

Elisa is on course to receive her bachelor’s and master’s in accounting in just five years with Pacific’s dual-degree program. 

Pacific’s dual accounting degree fast-tracks your pursuit of a bachelor’s and master’s degree, while preparing you for the California CPA exam. Elisa took a wide variety of courses after enrolling in the program. 

“With the accounting master’s program, you’re taking managerial, accounting and a bunch of other accounting courses that may not actually be offered to you at a lot of other schools,” Elisa explained. “This can include taxes, auditing and a lot of other courses that can actually prepare you for the CPA exam.” 

Leading Pacific’s Student Investment Fund

While Elisa has been working toward her master’s degree, she was also CEO and the chief financial officer of the Eberhardt Student Investment Fund (SIF).  Elisa and the other SIF students manage an investment portfolio that is approaching $4 million dollars. In the 17 years since the SIF program began, Students were able to return $1.6 million of the fund’s net assets to the University in support of Pacific’s mission and activities.  

 As CEO, Elisa has been responsible for ensuring the class stayed on track, presentations were on time and that students were all familiar with analyzing financial data on the Bloomberg terminal. Elisa says the CEO position helped her land an internship with Bowman and Company, an accounting firm in Stockton. “It looks really impressive on a resume,” she said. 

Elisa says one of the most valuable experiences SIF students get is their annual trip to New York where they tour the financial district, including the New York Stock Exchange. 

“We were actually able to talk to investment bankers and see what their daily life actually looks like,” Elisa said. “So, it’s a great opportunity if you want to actually put yourself in the shoes of an investment banker.” 

Entering the world of finance

With graduation around the corner, Elisa is confident about the journey ahead. 

“I definitely want to take advantage of the knowledge being fresh in my head and passing that [CPA] exam,” she said. “On top of that, I’m also hoping to work full time for Bowman and Company, which is the company that I’ll be starting my internship for.” 

 Elisa credits her professors for helping her succeed at Pacific. She encourages other students to take advantage of the opportunities the university offers. 

“Don’t take the small class sizes for granted. With the small class sizes, you’re definitely able to reach out to your professors a lot more easily with a lot of larger schools,” she said 

Learn more about getting a bachelor and master’s in accounting in five years in Pacific’s Master of Accounting dual-degree program.

Master of Accounting student Aaron Gill ’22 found his summer accounting internship at Moss Adams through the Eberhardt School of Business’s Career Management Center. He says the opportunity to work and learn at a top 10 accounting firm taught him not only about auditing clients, but how to navigate his career in accounting.

Aaron walks us through his experience this summer, from securing the opportunity to jumping into his internship tasks. Plus, he explains how to best learn on the job and why you should never be afraid to ask questions.

What I did at my internship

I was an audit intern for Moss Adams, a top 10 accounting company in the U.S. They serve thousands of clients around the world, including big clients such as Sunkist, the Seattle Seahawks and Raley’s. I worked in the Stockton office, a few days in the Sacramento office and I also worked remotely from home.

As an audit intern, my role varied. Some days I audited cash. Other days I audited accounts payable and accounts receivable. Other days I would review board meetings and summarize key points and verify clients met their board meeting minutes.

During the first couple weeks of the internship, I usually had a ton of meetings over Microsoft Teams going over who to get help from and other training. Once client work started, I would have meetings with my engagement team for what was expected of the day. After those meetings, I would work for the rest of the day and ask questions when needed.

How I got my internship (and how I prepared)

I got my internship through UOP. I got a ton of Handshake notifications and emails from Eberhardt’s Career Management Center about accounting firms looking for summer interns, so I applied to Moss Adams and was accepted for their summer internship program. The weekly emails the Career Management Center sends always helped keep me in the loop for companies that had open internship roles for accounting firms.

I feel some of my experiences at Pacific helped me prepare for this opportunity. I recall seeing things from my general education and accounting classes show up during presentations in the internship and I was able to recall the information I learned.

What I learned through the experience

It was nice to learn the different types of things you need to do to fully audit a client. I also learned some tips on how I can continue to grow in my career when I start full-time work and how to be an effective team member.

I also learned to ask questions. I did not expect everyone at my internship to be so helpful. If you asked a question to someone, they would always help refer you to someone who would know instead of brushing you off.

Everyone wanted to learn a little about you and help give you some advice along the way. Even though some of the staff, seniors or partners were busy with their own work, they had no problem helping the other interns and me whenever we had questions.

Remember, no question is a dumb question. Someone will be able to help you. Asking questions will go a long way in helping you learn and will show others that you really care about your work.

Want to learn more how Pacific students stayed busy this summer? Keep an eye on People of Pacific for more internship diaries!

Amreet Pannu ’22 spent his summer interning for PwC, a Big Four accounting firm and one of the largest professional services companies in the world. Amreet says he not only received essential training in auditing, but also gained invaluable networking skills that will take him far in his career.

Below, Amreet shares what a typical day as an auditing intern is like, how Pacific’s Master of Accounting program prepared him to succeed at PwC, and his advice for how to make the most of your internship.

What I do at my internship

My internship was at PwC. PwC offers business advisory services which include audit, tax, strategy management, and consulting. Their purpose is to build trust in society and solve important problems.

I was an auditing intern. A normal day for me during my internship consisted of networking with fellow interns in my San Jose office, meeting my engagement team and learning what is expected of interns and how I could help the team.

What I like about my internship

The internship kind of surprised me. I thought being an intern I would just be networking, but I got a lot of training and coaching on what real auditors do, which I enjoyed. I worked on multiple things, such as looking at EGA’s and updating workpapers.

My favorite part of the internship was meeting new people. With my engagement team, I worked with Splunk, a software company that provides a data platform for businesses, and meeting everyone on the Splunk team was really fun. I’ve learned that making new connections with people will take you very far in your career.

How I prepared for this opportunity

I feel like my experience at Pacific has really helped me with my internship. The people that I have met at Pacific have given me great advice and the classes that I have taken at Pacific have given me great knowledge on accounting.

My advice for future interns

Get involved. Participate in every social event and try to network with as many people as possible. Being open to new ideas and getting out of your comfort zone will make you a more well-rounded professional and help your career.