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.

Makenna Brown is in a dual-degree program at Pacific where she is working on her Bachelor of Science and master’s degrees in civil engineering. She is getting hands-on experience in her field by working on a water tunnel project in Seattle, Washington. 

What a normal day looks like for me during my internship 

A normal day begins with a meeting of what tasks need to be completed, any safety concerns, and stretches. Then, I go to the office and do some admin tasks such as quantity takeoffs which are calculating how much material is needed on a site. Later, I head out to the field for a few hours where I oversee the work and do quality control. In the afternoon, I finish up tasks like writing the daily report of the progress of work on the site. 

What types of projects or assignments have I been able to work on with Lane Construction 

Lane Construction works on many projects around the country from highways to tunnels. I am working on the water quality project in Seattle where they’re building a storage tunnel for storm and sewer water since it rains most of the year here. Within this project, I have been mainly working on the micro tunnel that’ll be connecting to the main tunnel. I assist the field engineer and superintendent with calculations, writing reports, and purchase orders. Out in the field, I do quality control and learn by watching the subcontractors and laborers work. It’s exciting seeing contract drawings come to life! 

How University of the Pacific prepared me for this experience 

I think the courses have helped a lot, having prior knowledge allowed me to apply and extend what I know in the real world. Such as working with CAD drawings and understanding why certain materials are used. 

Why I came to University of the Pacific 

What drew me to Pacific was the blended program! Getting my master’s degree has always been a goal of mine growing up and after spending three years at San Joaquin Delta College, I didn’t think when I transferred to a university, I would still have the opportunity to obtain my master’s. I liked the fact that the classes were small and Dr. Saviz, Dr. Lee and Dr. Steimel have been a huge support with my transition to the school this last year. 

My favorite part of interning with Lane Construction 

My favorite part has been talking to different people, from the bosses to subcontractors. I think learning and understanding what they do has helped me comprehend what all goes into projects. 

My advice on making the most of an internship 

Ask as many questions as you can. You’re there to learn and everyone there knows that. They’re not expecting you to know everything.  

When I first got here, I was lost, they were just talking and throwing terms at me. Over time those terms became second nature to me because I would ask related questions and get a visualization on the site.  

Another thing, be as hands-on as possible and take on any challenges. It’s better to learn and progress and mess up now than later. I would ask for more tasks when I started to get my daily ones done quicker. I would also ask to be at different sites so I could extend my understanding of the project.