“She followed the blueprint”: Alumna Ciara Devlin ’22 shows how networking led her to prestigious accounting firm

It was a full-circle moment when Ciara Devlin ’22 (Accounting; Finance) spoke to a group of students in SUNY New Paltz’s accounting and finance programs.

“My time at New Paltz has prepared me for a smooth transition into the real world and set me up with the necessary skills to be successful,” she said. “I was grateful to have been given the opportunity to share my experiences with accounting and finance students, whose shoes I was in not too long ago.” 

As part of the School of Business’s Accounting Month programming, which includes the “Meet the Firms” event on Wednesday, Sept. 21, Devlin volunteered her time to tout the benefits of networking for current students at her alma mater. She told the story of how a chance encounter at a a virtual event with “Big Four” accounting firm Ernst & Young opened her to opportunities within the company, eventually helping her secure an accounting internship and an offer for a paid position.

“You never know what is going to be coming your way in this field,” she told the class of aspiring accounting and finance professionals. “There’s so many opportunities that you might not even realize, you just have to be on the lookout for them.”

Accounting Lecturer Skeeter Richardson moderated the event, recalling her time as Devlin’s professor.

“She followed the blueprint,” she said. “Networking with your professors and business professionals actually does work.”

Visit the SUNY New Paltz accounting program at this link.