Spotlight on Recent MPAcc Graduate – Maggie King

September 7, 2020

Maggie King, an August 2020 graduate from Clemson’s MPAcc Program

Maggie King came from a family of educators but her decision to pursue an accounting degree occurred early in her college career; she was hooked after her first accounting class and “never looked back.” After graduating with her undergraduate degree from Appalachian State, Maggie began researching graduate programs. She wanted to achieve the requirements necessary to obtain her CPA license, and Clemson’s MPAcc program stood out. “When I started to explore different programs, I was very attracted to Clemson’s integrated approach. The CPA courses were a part of the curriculum rather than an extra requirement to take care of on my own” she said.

One of Maggie’s most memorable experiences in the program highlights the comradery she formed with her classmates. There was one week where the entire program was scheduled to take the FAR portion of the CPA exam, and she recalls “… leaving the ONE Building at 8pm, going home for dinner and coming back. When I got back to the building I felt like all of my classmates were also there – glasses on and headphones in, studying so hard. It was one of those moments when you realize that you are not alone in the journey!” She also notes that the technical expertise and networking opportunities she has gained throughout the program greatly prepared her for her professional career. “I think my time at Clemson has really sharpened my technical skills to where they need to be as I enter the workforce. Each class lends itself well to diving in and understanding more about topics that I know I will encounter during my time in public accounting. I think, despite COVID, the program has done a good job helping us grow our networks. My last class I took as a part of the program was taught by all different firms!” Maggie also earned a graduate assistantship and served as a GA during the program where she was assigned to assist Professor Pearse with a variety of task. She credits this experience with improving her time management and communication skills. Although Maggie acknowledges the program is challenging, she feels it really helps students succeed where it counts, by preparing them for the CPA exam!

Maggie graduated with a 4.0 from Clemson’s MPAcc program in August of 2020. She has accepted a position with Elliott Davis’ audit practice in Greenville, SC, which will begin in Sept. 2020.