For many, tax season is the dreaded time of year filled with piles of receipts and confusing paperwork.
For Dylan Chesterman, who works for a small CPA firm just outside of New Orleans, it小蝌蚪APP檚 an opportunity to serve the small businesses in his community.
小蝌蚪APP淭axes are a scary thing for a lot of people,小蝌蚪APP says Chesterman. 小蝌蚪APP淲ith business owners, they can really get complicated and stressful. I always tell them, 小蝌蚪APP楧o what you do best. I小蝌蚪APP檒l take the stress off your hands.小蝌蚪APP櫺◎蝌紸PP
Becoming a Certified Public Accountant wasn小蝌蚪APP檛 always Chesterman小蝌蚪APP檚 goal. As an undergraduate accounting student, he had his sights set on auditing.
But when he realized his passion was in tax preparation, he began looking at graduate accounting programs so he could earn the credits necessary to sit for the CPA Exam.
UL Lafayette小蝌蚪APP檚 M.S. in Accounting online program checked all the boxes: local, flexible, affordable, and reputable.
From Auditing to Tax Preparation
As an undergraduate student, Chesterman interned with a , finishing his degree a semester early in December 2020 with an auditing job there already lined up.
There was just one minor issue: his contract didn小蝌蚪APP檛 start until August 2021.
He knew he couldn小蝌蚪APP檛 wait nine months to start working, so at the start of tax season, he got a temporary job helping a CPA in his hometown.
小蝌蚪APP淗e took me under his wing, mentored me, and showed me the ropes of taxes,小蝌蚪APP Chesterman says. 小蝌蚪APP淚 discovered that I really enjoyed doing taxes and helping all these small businesses we worked with.小蝌蚪APP
After tax season ended, the two naturally parted ways, and Chesterman started his corporate auditing job.
However, a month later, Hurricane Ida made landfall south of New Orleans, forcing Chesterman to take a leave of absence to evacuate and rebuild.
小蝌蚪APP淒uring that time, I did a little soul searching, and I realized that my corporate job just wasn小蝌蚪APP檛 for me,小蝌蚪APP he says. 小蝌蚪APP淚 was working remotely for about 55 to 60 hours a week in my home office, not seeing anybody, and I just didn小蝌蚪APP檛 want to do it anymore.小蝌蚪APP
So, he approached the CPA he previously worked for and asked for a full-time job. And, luckily, he said yes.
The Path to CPA
With Chesterman小蝌蚪APP檚 transition from auditing to tax preparation came the need to earn a CPA license. In Louisiana, that means completing 30 hours of college credit hours beyond the 120 required for a bachelor小蝌蚪APP檚 degree.
Thus, Chesterman小蝌蚪APP檚 search for a master小蝌蚪APP檚 in accounting program began.
While Chesterman considered a few different schools in Louisiana, he decided on UL Lafayette小蝌蚪APP檚 online M.S. in Accounting because it was flexible, affordable, and reputable.
小蝌蚪APP淯L Lafayette was the best value,小蝌蚪APP he says. 小蝌蚪APP淭wo of my cousins earned finance degrees from UL Lafayette, and one of them earned his MBA online. They had nothing but good things to say about the 小蝌蚪APP小蝌蚪APP檚 business programs.小蝌蚪APP
Once in the program, Chesterman found a mentor and role model in the M.S. in Accounting program coordinator, Dr. Cheryl Metrejean. Dr. Metrejean frequently publishes research on tax-related issues and has been cited by national news organizations as an expert in the field.
小蝌蚪APP淚 took every tax-related class offered and loved every one of them,小蝌蚪APP he recalls. 小蝌蚪APP淚 think I took around five of Dr. Metrejean小蝌蚪APP檚 classes. I just really enjoyed her teaching style.小蝌蚪APP
Those classes, which included ACCT 527: Corporate Taxation, ACCT 528: Federal Tax Laws for Partnerships, and ACCT 529: Federal Income Taxation of Subchapter S Corporations, gave Chesterman an in-depth look at the issues he encounters in his job every day.
小蝌蚪APP淭he classes were very informational,小蝌蚪APP he says. 小蝌蚪APP淚小蝌蚪APP檇 be able to pull up what I was doing with our clients at work and understand exactly what we were doing and why were doing it because of the classes I took.小蝌蚪APP
The program小蝌蚪APP檚 faculty weren小蝌蚪APP檛 the only people who passed on new knowledge to Chesterman. Chesterman quickly discovered that other students, too, had lots of insight to share.
小蝌蚪APP淭here was a great variety of people fresh out of undergrad and people who were working parents and professionals,小蝌蚪APP he says. 小蝌蚪APP淓verybody had some insight to give, whether they were a recent grad and just had internship experience or were in their 40s or 50s doing a complete career transition.小蝌蚪APP
School During Tax Season
Working for a CPA firm meant that Chesterman needed to build his school schedule around tax season.
In the spring, Chesterman took one class each eight-week term, often waking up early with his wife, a teacher, at 4:30 a.m. to knock out an hour or two of schoolwork before heading into the office.
In the summer and fall semesters, after most clients小蝌蚪APP taxes had been filed for the year, Chesterman would bump his schedule up to two classes each term, with permission from his firm小蝌蚪APP檚 owner to complete coursework during the day as time permitted.
小蝌蚪APP淟uckily, my boss built his practice almost purely around taxes,小蝌蚪APP Chesterman says. 小蝌蚪APP淪o, during those slow times at work, he was fully supportive of me getting my schoolwork done. When I earn my CPA, it will ultimately benefit the both of us.小蝌蚪APP
The Future Awaits
Last month, six months after completing his master小蝌蚪APP檚 degree, Chesterman sat for the fourth and final section of the CPA exam. He小蝌蚪APP檒l find out soon if he passed.
小蝌蚪APP淚 feel pretty good about it,小蝌蚪APP he says. 小蝌蚪APP淚 already passed my first three.小蝌蚪APP
After he obtains his CPA license, he小蝌蚪APP檒l start working toward his next goal: taking over the firm.
小蝌蚪APP淢y boss is getting to retire in the next four or five years, probably,小蝌蚪APP Chesterman says. 小蝌蚪APP淓very year, I小蝌蚪APP檝e taken on more responsibility, and he小蝌蚪APP檚 giving me more to oversee and handle. It小蝌蚪APP檚 down the road, but the plan is for me to stay here and buy out the firm.小蝌蚪APP
Chesterman encourages other accountants to go back to school to pursue their master小蝌蚪APP檚 degrees and/or CPA licenses.
With the right mindset, it小蝌蚪APP檚 100% doable, he says.
小蝌蚪APP淚t小蝌蚪APP檚 not as scary as you think it is,小蝌蚪APP Chesterman advises. 小蝌蚪APP淚t just takes a little bit of focus and determination. You don小蝌蚪APP檛 have to take two classes per quarter. You can go at your own pace, and with that, you小蝌蚪APP檙e more than capable of balancing both a full-time job and school.小蝌蚪APP
Advance your accounting career and earn the credits you need to become a CPA in our 100% online master小蝌蚪APP檚 in accounting program.