Versatility, an interactive environment and tailormade programmes for accountants are just some of the key highlights of taking up the Master of Professional Accounting (MPA) and MSc in Accounting, Data & Analytics (MSA) programmes at SMU, a panel of outstanding alumni shared at the Accounting Masters’ Alumni Sharing webinar.
Looking to upgrade her skills, Fony Tasani, Director & Head of Finance, Colliers International, shared that even though she had a business degree and was working with PwC, as her career progressed she felt pulled to learn the technical accounting skills needed to advance in her career.
“That’s why I went into this MPA, because at the end of the programme we’ll need to go into the chartered accountant’s programme. And when it came to the choice of which university to pursue further studies, SMU is the one that is more versatile and has a balance between the technical skills and communication skills, so that’s when I decided to take the SMU programme,” said Ms. Tasani.
Keeping a finger on the pulse of global developments, SMU’s MPA and MSA programmes provide an avenue for students and professionals alike to explore different avenues to build and enhance their careers.
Said Wendy You, Senior Finance Data Analyst, Visa, “Prior to joining Visa, I was in the public sector with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), in the supervisory arm, to regulate financial institutions in the capital market intermediaries. The work that I was doing was around policy making and inspections of these financial institutions. Then in 2018 when this programme started, Singapore was really pushing for big data, and I think in the finance industry, there was a push for professionals to get into the data analytics side of things. When the SMU programme came about, I thought that it was something that would pivot me into a new area that I could explore further.”
For Gavin Ng, Lead (Internal Audit, Analytics & Business), FairPrice Group, the MSA programme was able to bring together his background in accounting with data technology, which made it easier for him to handle the massive data that he had to work with regularly. “Once I was crunching some numbers, over 10 million records, which took many hours to run, and I think I would have been out of a job if I continued at that pace. I started to shortlist all the data courses out there. And I noticed this brand-new MSA programme, and its focus is on something I’m familiar with – the application of accounting with data technology. That sounded like a good fit, and it was tailor-made for accountants. SMU is also renowned for its interactive environment and very open learning programme. And during the interview process, I was assured that after two years I could handle big data. So that’s how I transited to set up a data warehouse and lead a team of data analysts, transiting from an accountant to an auditor to a technology personnel,” he said.
Not only can professionals leverage the benefits of studying at SMU, but also undergrads that are looking for opportunities both in Singapore and beyond, as Tu Yiyi, Global Business Solution Finance Analyst, Apple Inc, shared.
“Having graduated from Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, I dreamed of working and living in Singapore. SMU is a school that provides you an academic background, so you can get the professional accounting side of the programme, as well as the social networking. The professors are so professional on how to get you on board for both academic and professional life,” she quipped.
The internship programmes and career support that SMU provides, in addition to practical course modules, have also been instrumental in providing students with opportunities to secure key positions in global organisations.
Ms. Tu said that one important feature was the internship programme that SMU provides, with professors and career coaches guiding students through the process. “One thing that gave me a head start was the data modelling and visualisation module, which is a basic course for both MPA and MSA, so you’re learning Tableau to do the data visualisation. SMU gave me the opportunity to open the gate to an Apple internship and also help me with the technical skills,” she said.
With a dedicated career advisor for each programme to guide and support students in their academic and professional journeys, Ms. You also shared that when she was preparing for her opportunity at Visa, career advisors guided her through one-on-one sessions to craft her resume, making sure that it stood out and got selected.
The programmes also prepare students for leadership roles, as Ms. Tasani pointed out, adding that the right mix of technical and business strategic skills proved essential in her current leadership role.
“I think when it comes to the SMU MPA, the modules that were taught are quite technical in terms of Advanced Financial Accounting, and it teaches us about consolidations, and tax planning, which helped me a lot in gaining some sort of technical accounting skills so that I can do my work in the auditing field. Technical skills are very important because if you don’t understand it you will not really progress further… In terms of more advisory, strategic business kind of modules, the programme actually helped me a lot in my current leadership role. Apart from the basic fundamentals that help me to know the work that we have to do in day-to-day operations, as you progress you’ll need to have more business strategy to know to do mergers and acquisitions, divesting, corporate planning in terms of tax planning, how we optimise the taxes and so on. So that aspect of advisory is really important to prepare us for that leadership role. Especially in the SMU environment, it’s a lot more on discussions, interactive brainstorming in group sessions and discussions, so it really equips us with that kind of soft skill, on top of the technical skills that we have,” explained Ms. Tasani.
Clearly providing an experiential learning environment that reflects real-world scenarios, Mr. Ng shared that in the final term, amid the uncertainty and not knowing which clients or data he was going to work on, he was able to take on four projects, three of which made it into production and are used by stakeholders. “As a part-time student, I also learnt a lot about time management – how to manage your time and the expectations of various stakeholders, be it family, employers and also the professors. It’s a very open learning environment and you get to experience all things in real life,” he said.
Interaction with the professors and working on projects together with other students also helped prepare Ms. Tu for her role at Apple. “In SMU, the size of the classroom is just 40-50 people and everyone gets a fair share of interaction with the prof. One thing I realised later when I started working, was that all group projects we were doing at SMU was really important for me because now, working at Apple, everything is project-based and you always have to influence people with your ideas or innovation, get people on board, approach the problem and get the solution. And that’s what I learnt at SMU – how to collaborate with other people, the teamwork leadership, and how you approach problems – that helped me shape the way I work and interact with others,” she elaborated.
For professionals, at the end of the day, the programme offers a high return on investment (ROI), said Ms Tasani. “Because apart from the technical skills, all the soft skills, all the connections and the interactions with the professors, especially since they are industry leaders, is very relevant for us if you want to venture into professional accounting,” she added.
Gaining the knowledge to improve productivity in your organisation is also crucial said Mr. Ng. “For the MSA course, if you’re really interested in data technology and how to apply these for deeper insights or efficiency for your organisation, you can really consider these two disciplines – accounting and data – that really set a solid foundation to navigate the uncertainty with confidence and to deal with a wide variety of challenges you might face, that you can really use data technology to solve with your business acumen,” he explained.
Concurring with the programmes’ ROI especially from a career switch perspective, Ms. You added, “I think the MSA course exceeded my expectations, and what Gavin said about the MSA data analytics track – it really prepared me very well because actually switching from policy writing to something that’s really data-centric now, the skill set and tools that were taught in the class were really structured and comprehensive – which prepared me very well in terms of this career switch.”
And if still not sold on taking on the MSA or MPA courses at SMU, Ms. Tu shared that whether new to accounting or not, the course provides excellent knowledge of the basics and more in-depth data analytics that is important for future prospects.
“If you are new to accounting, the entry courses provide an excellent level of basic accounting knowledge because all the professors are so professional, and they actually care about what we learn from the courses. And if you’re not new to accounting, there’s a data side of it, with data analytic courses that’s very important for your future. Plus, Singapore as a city is so vibrant – it is the centre of attraction with so many opportunities,” she concluded.
