Growing up in Middle Tennessee, Matt Connors did not need to be sold on Vanderbilt. He also knew about the reputation of the MAcc program —particularly, he says, “its 100% success rate at helping students land positions with Big Four accounting firms. That was one of the biggest draws for me. Everybody gets a really solid job that sets you up for a strong professional career.”

As he considered his career options, he adds, “I figured I could go through the program and begin a very solid Big Four career that would expose me to the business world and perhaps introduce me to a field I am really interested in —or I might just love public accounting and stay with that. Either way, this program offered opportunities and a solid business foundation.

"The program has a direct pipeline to the Big Four firms. And when you have one of those firms attached to your resume, everybody knows what they’re getting out of you. They understand your foundation and the kind of training you’ve gone through. It opens up doors.”

That kind of certainty, Matt says, works in the other direction, too. “The Big Four firms have a very long relationship with Vanderbilt, so they know exactly what to expect from a Vanderbilt student. They know our educational background and what we’re capable of doing. Vanderbilt could not have made the recruitment process easier for us. All four firms really came to us. It didn’t require any reaching out on our part because they were all in the classroom. They all met with us individually or spoke to us as a group.”

It also helps, Matt adds, that “many of the professionals that came to recruit us during the program are Vanderbilt alumni.”

The entire program is put together very intentionally. Every class is structured either to help us start a Big Four job or help us on the CPA exam. This program has completely set up my career.”

Fun Fact: A Spanish major as an undergrad, Matt studied abroad in Argentina and Chile —and would love to return.

Vanderbilt could not have made the recruitment process easier for us.