Student Excellence Series: Emily Pawoll

The UNO CBA Student Excellence series highlights several of the outstanding students at the college who were recently recognized for their accomplishments at the 2019 Beta Gamma Sigma Honors and Awards Ceremony. UNO CBA students are diverse, multitalented, and hard-working, and they graduate as intelligent and ambitious business leaders with the knowledge they need to make an impact. Learn more about why we're proud of Emily Pawoll, honored for Accounting, below.

Major

BSBA in Accounting
Sociology minor

Honors and Involvement

Delta Sigma Pi Key, one of five highest GPAs in graduating class

Graduation Date

May 2019

Award

Honored at department ceremony as Outstanding Accounting Undergraduate Major

Why did you choose to attend UNO?

"I choose UNO simply because it felt the most like home. I originally went to UNL for my freshman year, but I was at UNO frequently with my brother who attended this college, and I just loved the feeling of this campus and community. It’s always felt like a place of challenge and growth."

Have you had a favorite class at UNO? Why was it your favorite?

"Dr. Kealey’s Intermediate Financial Accounting I was my favorite! I enjoyed this class because Dr. Kealey challenged me as a student and helped me realize how many opportunities there are in the field of accounting. He also showed how great it can be when you talk to your professors when you’re overwhelmed and that they care about you and your progress."

How has attending UNO CBA helped you to achieve your personal and professional goals?

"CBA and the people and opportunities presented here are absolutely the reason I have been able to achieve the goals I’ve wanted to. UNO CBA is ever-growing, but somehow it manages to provide personal, individual opportunities for each student, such as organizations specific to each major. For me, the small class sizes and engaged professors have helped me to be able to learn from the professors not only about the classroom material but also about the business field in general. Also, Beta Alpha Psi (accounting, finance, and MIS organization) has given me internships and leadership opportunities that I would never have imagined possible."

What's your dream job? What pursuits or goals do you have for the future?

"Dream job? With my accounting degree I’m going to start off as a tax accountant (about to embark on my CPA and CMA studying), and I think it would be great to be a forensic accountant with the FBI down the road. The highest dream at some point is that I would absolutely love to start a non-profit where I can help people, potentially in the area of marriage and family therapy!"

What parts of your CBA journey are you most proud of?

"Transferring from UNL and also living an hour away from school were somewhat challenging. I know there’s a lot of transfer students at UNO, but it’s definitely daunting to come into a college after everyone has already spent the last year together and is familiar with each other and sort of repeating the whole process I did my first year of getting used to a new campus and everything. I’m not the most outgoing to try to go up to a group of people and make friends, and I didn’t know anyone besides my brother when I transferred here, so it was definitely hard at first to figure out how to get involved and build meaningful connections.

"It also may not have helped living an hour away; I grew up in the country near a small town about an hour away, and I absolutely love country living, so it’s always been worth the drive to me, but it sure takes up some time to spend 14 hours a week driving back and forth!"

What has been the top highlight of your CBA experience?

"Finding a top highlight is hard, but anything related to Beta Alpha Psi is definitely up there. It probably took me a tad too long to get comfortable, but this organization provided me with some of the best people I’ve met in college, three different leadership roles, the opportunity to go to our national conference, internships, and so much more. Some of us officers last semester created a Financial Literacy Day for 5^th graders at Westgate Elementary and partnered with KPMG to fund this, and it was just so much fun to see our team come together for that event and to combine my passions of this organization and working with kids in one day!"

If you could tell someone about UNO CBA, what would you say?

"This is probably corny, but I definitely believe that UNO CBA is the place where dreams can start to come true! The professors truly do care for you and want to see you succeed, and they help you to have opportunities that lead you toward your goals. Also, we have so much diversity and different backgrounds, so there’s so much opportunity for new knowledge, growth, and challenging your mindset all around."

And finally, if you could give a message to any prospective students interested in coming to UNO CBA, what would you tell them?

"I would definitely tell prospective students that although they’re always going to hear people telling them to get involved so they have things to put on their resume, it is so important to find organizations that they’re passionate about to join and enjoy be a part of; it’s so much easier to talk about what’s important to you in interviews.

"Also, I would encourage just talking to the people in your classes; be the first to smile and start a conversation rather than busying yourself with social media during breaks, as you never know the connections that can be built with those around you.

"Finally, I would stress taking the time to get to know your professors; college is full of tough choices, and having the support and guidance of your professors makes such a difference."