Accounting Student Participates in Mary T. Washington Wylie Internship Program

College of DuPage Accounting student Marion Brisport of Glen Ellyn recently participated in the prestigious Mary T. Washington Wylie Accounting Internship Preparation Program sponsored by the Illinois CPA Society.

The program is for African American and other underrepresented minority students who have at least a 3.0 GPA and a sophomore or junior standing. Brisport was one of only 25 college or university students in Illinois selected to participate, with each receiving a $500 scholarship.

The three-day training program in January gave participants an opportunity to interview for a paid internship with a prestigious Chicago accounting firm. Brisport interviewed with Ernst & Young and KPMG, while other participating firms included Crowe Horwath, Deloitte and Grant Thornton.

“It was a beneficial and fun opportunity,” she said. “We listened to presentations from accounting professionals and had an opportunity to network. It was great meeting other students who were like me, and I’m hopeful about obtaining an internship.”

While she has always liked numbers, Brisport first enrolled in a pharmacy program in Guyana, South America, where she grew up.

“When I was in high school, my parents were pushing me toward a science field,” she said. “While I liked chemistry and math, I discovered that I was not a fan of biology.”

With a relative in Glen Ellyn, and an older sister and brother who attended College of DuPage, Brisport enrolled at COD and began to pursue accounting. She learned about the Mary T. Washington Wylie program in her Managerial Accounting class through Professor Kathy Horton.

“It’s important to me that my students are aware of opportunities like this internship preparation program,” Horton said. “Marion did an outstanding job in my course and certainly deserved the honor.”

Brisport, who is a member of both Phi Theta Kappa and Alpha Beta Gamma, plans to transfer in fall 2013 to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and then would like to work as a CPA for one of Chicago’s big accounting firms.

“Accounting is not just about numbers, and I’ve always liked that,” she said. “I even enjoy the homework, so I know I can make a career out of it! College of DuPage has really helped me toward accomplishing this goal. I’ve had great teachers, and everyone has been so helpful and organized. I can’t thank them enough.”

For more information about the Accounting program, call (630) 942-2140, email carlsonb@cod.edu or visit www.cod.edu/programs/accounting.