My Personal Statement for MAcc, thoughts?

Question

This is a rough draft of my personal statement for a Masters of Accountancy program. Just looking for some thoughts, tips, ideas, etc. The topic is the general "give your background, why you want to be an accountant, why x school, and how it will prepare you". Thank you very much!

It has taken a lot of questioning and effort to determine what career path I would like to pursue. That is an honest answer amidst all of the personal statements describing childhood fascination with numbers or money, and the ensuing inevitability of a career in accounting. I had no idea I wanted to be an accountant when I grew up.

My path began when I graduated from ________ in 2008 with a degree in English during a severe financial crisis. I have had a number of jobs since graduating, and I have learned to embrace the diversity of their experiences. I have worked in offices crunching numbers and I have worked directly with people solving problems, both of which are important aspects of accountancy. I believe that my professional background will greatly aid in my graduate education, because it has created a strong desire for me to find a focus, along with a determination to succeed. I want a specialization, a career as an accountant. As for my educational background, my English degree gives me not only the ability to communicate, necessary in public accounting, but also a unique perspective among those with accounting backgrounds that I can bring to __________ program.

I believe highly in the importance of education. I have taken a variety of college courses since graduating, from computer science and calculus to accounting. First of all, I felt the need to bolster my quantitative academic resume due to my liberal arts background. Secondly, I was seeking a passion. I moved to _______ because of its financial sector, and thus enrolled in financial accounting at __________. I not only stayed awake during my early morning class, but I was enthralled by the subject matter. I had always enjoyed reading BusinessWeek and The Economist, mainly to understand the great recession I was enduring, but to actually learn how companies operate and succeed by examining financial statements took my interest to a new level. I began researching career opportunities and discovered auditing, which dealt directly with financial statements, and then I found out how I was going to get there.

My next step is to obtain a Masters in Accountancy at ______. As soon as I came to that realization, I buckled down and began preparing for the GMAT while working full-time and taking supplemental courses such as statistics and economics. I met with my advisor and with several professors in the accounting department to discuss my plans. We all agreed that a master’s degree would be the best way to launch my career given my non-traditional background. It is integral for me to continue to learn, to develop myself academically and professionally in order to achieve my goal. I need an education that will prepare me to work as an auditor in _______ and to pass the CPA examination. I believe graduate school at _________ is exactly where I need to be to continue to traverse the path I have worked so hard to discover.

kingfalcon · Answer

For the record, I know very little about MAcc programs (or even whether this is the right place on this site for this). However, I'll offer a bit of feedback.

"That is an honest answer amidst all of the personal statements describing childhood fascination with numbers or money, and the ensuing inevitability of a career in accounting."

Isn't this implying that your fellow applicants are embellishing or being deceitful? I am not sure you want to start your essay off with such negativity.

actressinpink · Answer

I actually went in a very similar direction for my personal essay (and I got accepted to all the schools that I applied to, including UTA, so it's definitely effective!)

I think it's a good first draft - my only advice is to maybe make it more personal. I feel like the essay is not specific enough and you need to give more details about your situation. Personally, I would suggest you start off with a good story to "hook" the audience and make it specific to you.

For example, I started my essay off with a story of how I was stuck on a boat in Thailand worried that I was going to drown (you can make it as dramatic / non-dramatic as you like) and wondering what I was doing with my life. That segwayed into me pursuing challenges and carving my own path - and finally, given my non-traditional background, how my decision to pursue a Masters in Accounting is a continuation of me carving my own path. It all came around full circle and tied with a pretty little bow on top.

If you do choose to keep that as your introduction though, I agree with the above comment to take out that second sentence.

Just my two cents!

mgmcdowell86 · Answer

Good point, thank you.

Edit-

Great idea with the story. I actually have a pretty dramatic one that I had almost forgotten about! Here's my new, more positive, first paragraph.

To say a lot went through my mind when I had a gun pointed at me is an understatement. I was a victim of an armed robbery a few years ago, and it shifted my life perspective. I realized that I had not been living life, but instead merely following blindly where I thought it was going. I decided, in that moment of both chaos and clarity, to assertively live and to create my own way. Since then, it has taken a lot of questioning and effort to determine what career path I would like to pursue. In fact, I had no idea at the time I wanted to become an accountant.

backto1986 · Answer

"As for my educational background, my English degree gives me not only the ability to communicate, necessary in public accounting, but also a unique perspective among those with accounting backgrounds that I can bring to __________ program.

how will you having an english degree bring a unquie perspective a an accounting grad program?

"My path began when I graduated from ________ in 2008 with a degree in English during a severe financial crisis"

whats the point of telling us it was during the severe financial crisis?

"I have had a number of jobs since graduating, and I have learned to embrace the diversity of their experiences"

their? your's? job's?

"I have worked in offices crunching numbers and I have worked directly with people solving problems, both of which are important aspects of accountancy."

how are they important in accounting? at least for public accounting i believe it is more developing audit procedures and testing, the number crunching is nothing you can't do with a basic calculator.

"I had always enjoyed reading BusinessWeek and The Economist, mainly to understand the great recession I was enduring, but to actually learn how companies operate and succeed by examining financial statements took my interest to a new level"

Unless The Economist have begun publishing 10-k's I don't see the connection between reading a magazine and examining and auditing the assertions made my management in the annual report (which public accountants are paid to do)

you haven't stated why you are applying to ____ school. Is it the region, do you want to work in the region after graduation? Is it their reputation among employers? Is it their high job placement rate? Is it the high pass rate on the CPA of there graduates? Is it the firms they attract on campus? Is it there affordability yet challenging curriculum?

mylittlemoon · Answer

Great, though-provoking comments!!! I registered on this forum to say this, lol. Really helpful!

My Personal Statement for MAcc, thoughts?

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