Michelle Lee is a senior from Katy, a suburb of Houston, Texas. After hearing about her sister’s positive experience at McCombs, Michelle decided to attend UT Austin to take advantage of the multitude of opportunities available to students, especially those in the Canfield BHP program.
Michelle grew up surrounded by music and played viola in high school, where she started developing leadership experience as the president of her orchestra. Since music is a significant part of her life, and because she wanted to try something new in college, she joined Fuse A Cappella during her freshman year. Through her involvement, Michelle has turned her singing hobby into an outlet to enjoy music and connect with others. She has been in a leadership position since freshman year and became President of Fuse A Cappella last year. The group has been a great way for Michelle to pursue her passion while developing leadership skills.
Canfield BHP has given Michelle another way to connect with her peers. Looking back as a fourth-year student, the most impactful aspect of Canfield BHP has been the strong community that it has provided. Michelle’s close friends from high school went to different colleges, and Canfield BHP made her feel like she was part of a new community with long-lasting connections early on. Through the program’s small cohorts, she made many of her closest friends. She especially enjoyed studying abroad in the Canfield BHP Management in Copenhagen program, where she had good friends at the start and met even more by exploring Copenhagen together. She suggests that students study abroad if possible since it was a wonderful experience.
Michelle chose to major in accounting because she’s always been good with numbers. In freshman and sophomore year, she tried out introductory classes for different business majors through Canfield BHP classes. She enjoyed ACC 311H, the introductory Financial Accounting class. She also developed a close relationship with the Teaching Assistant since she regularly went to office hours. Her TA even connected her with the recruiter for her first summer internship.
Michelle decided to pursue the Integrated MPA (iMPA) program. An iMPA degree allows students to earn a BBA degree in accounting and a Master in Professional Accounting degree in only five years. This opportunity to study at McCombs, and getting her masters with one extra year seemed perfect for Michelle. With iMPA, she has gained another cohort.
Within iMPA, Michelle is pursuing the audit and assurance track since she will get more opportunities to work as part of a larger team, which she enjoys. During the busy season, which is January through March for audit, the iMPA program gives students the chance to work full-time and experience the most hectic part of the year while staying on track to graduate on time. Michelle will be working on the audit team at Deloitte in New York City.
Reflecting on her college experience, Michelle imparted the following advice for high schoolers and undergraduates: joining academic organizations can be overwhelming–if you have an interest, such as music, pursue it along with academics. Being a part of a group you are passionate about and where you can be a leader is incredibly helpful for personal development.
Learn about the Canfield BHP Management in Copenhagen program here: https://my.mccombs.utexas.edu/bba/international-programs/summer-faculty-led-programs/bba-copenhagen/
Learn about the iMPA program here: https://www.mccombs.utexas.edu/undergraduate-programs/bba/academics/majors/integrated-mpa/