Two students from Lone Star College-Montgomery are getting a high return on their accounting education after being awarded scholarships from the Houston CPA Society.
Miriam Boyer and Tracy Gibson, who each hold a bachelor’s degree, qualified for the scholarships this fall when they enrolled in advanced accounting courses at LSC-Montgomery in order to be eligible to take the CPA (certified professional accountant) exam with the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy and become licensed CPAs.
“LSC-Montgomery is an affordable college, but it’s just as effective as other universities in helping me gain my credentials,” said Boyer, who will take the first of four parts of the exam in February. “There is more hands-on learning, bigger experiences, and more interaction between the students and teachers.”
Boyer earned her bachelor’s degree in accounting from Sam Houston State University in August and came to LSC-Montgomery to take the additional 15 hours of advanced accounting courses to be eligible for the exam.
In January, Boyer will begin her job as an audit associate at BDO in Houston. She plans to become licensed as a CPA within one year to qualify for additional incentives provided by her employer.
“The CPA credentials are very important to employers,” said Madeline Brogan, professor of accounting at LSC-Montgomery. “It’s a prestigious title, and many employers offer incentives to get those initials.”
Gibson will work toward those ‘initials’ by taking the first test in January.
After graduating from the University of Texas in 1986 with a bachelor’s degree in geology and working as a geologist for 20 years, Gibson began a bookkeeping business six years ago. She came to LSC-Montgomery to build on her career in accounting, and this month, she completed the accounting advanced technical certificate.
In preparation for the CPA exam, Gibson decided to merge her bookkeeping business with Planche, Politz, and Ledit, LLC in The Woodlands.
“I’ll continue to work for the firm and do accounting for them while I earn my license,” said Gibson. “LSC-Montgomery is awesome. The classes are small, so you can ask plenty of questions, and of course, the professors are great.”
LSC-Montgomery offers an associate of applied science degree in accounting, as well as an accounting certificate, taxation certificate, accounting advanced technical certificate for CPA exam preparation, and continuing education office accounting courses.
For more information about the accounting program at LSC-Montgomery, contact Pat Sendelbach, accounting department chair, at 936.271.6134 or at patricia.a.sendelbach@LoneStar.edu; or Madeline Brogan at 936.273.7253 or madeline.m.brogan@LoneStar.edu.
LSC-Montgomery is located at 3200 College Park Drive, one-half mile west of Interstate 45, between Conroe and The Woodlands. For more information about the college, call 936.273.7000, or visit www.LoneStar.edu/montgomery.
With more than 69,000 students in credit classes for fall 2010, and a total enrollment of more than 85,000, Lone Star College System is the largest institution of higher education in the Houston area, and the fastest-growing community college system in Texas. Dr. Richard Carpenter is the chancellor of LSCS, which consists of five colleges including LSC-CyFair, LSC-Kingwood, LSC-Montgomery, LSC-North Harris, and LSC-Tomball, six centers, LSC-University Park, LSC-University Center at Montgomery, LSC-University Center at University Park, Lone Star Corporate College, and LSC-Online. To learn more visit LoneStar.edu.