The particularly distinguished Master of Accounting Program at the XXXX School at XXU is my first choice for graduate school for a variety of reasons, including the sheer excellence and highly respected nature of your Master’s Program in Accounting; your location is another huge factor. I see New York City as the center of the world because my field is international accounting and finance, and NYC is probably the world’s leading center for commerce and exchange. Thus, I feel strongly that I am a better fit at XXU than at any other program. The XXXX School represents the most careful preparation for my central goal of giving my all to a life of public service in auditing. A highly responsible and diligent individual, precise and focused, I am the type of person who is ideal for the professional role of auditor, taking responsibility for the financial interests of third parties, external users, creditors, and investors. My clients can rely on the disclosure I provide for them at the end of the fiscal year.

I am currently studying at the University at Buffalo and will earn my Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting this May 2016. I plan to take the first of four CPA exams this summer following graduation. I fully intend to get my CPA license as soon as possible and pass my CPA exams before graduating from a Master’s program. Once I graduate from XXU, NYC will be the perfect place to look for whole time work with a public accounting firm as an auditor, perhaps doing consulting work within a short time and gaining more experience. My long-term career goal is to become a partner in a prominent and highly reputable international accounting firm.

Two things happened in my college life that greatly reinforced my high level of motivation to excel in accounting. During my junior year, I attended an accounting competition called PwC Challenge; an annual case competition focused on high-level issues to test and improve decision-making skills. Each team comprises five students working as consultants for a fictitious client. We have two weeks to research an assigned accounting issue and develop a 12-minute presentation. I was the team leader, and my team consisted of five international students, none of whom were native speakers in a classroom made up mostly of native speakers. We won third place based on our creative ideas, not our accents. I was pleased to appreciate better the fully international flavor of the language of business and finance. The most critical thing I learned as an undergraduate student is that Accounting need not be boring. It can be as creative and fascinating as our imaginations will allow. I also became a member of an accounting student organization named Beta Alpha Psi, helping with a community service event called Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA) every spring semester. This program helps to prepare tax returns for individuals and families with annual incomes below $50,000. While I have logged hundreds if not thousands of hours in the classroom tackling the basics and finer points of accounting, this was the first time that I sat down with a client and helped someone, so it meant the world to me. This experience caused me to reflect very seriously both at the time and since then about the heavy responsibility of an accountant. This experience gave me great confidence and satisfaction when my clients left with smiles on their face. I thank you for considering my application to the XXXX School.