Earlier this month, three accountancy graduate students — Diana Gomez, Alexandra Gomez and Ivenn Paramo — were chosen as Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) Scholars. Each student will receive a $15,000 scholarship for the 2024-25 academic year.
The PCAOB Scholars Program is mandated by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, which is a United States federal law that mandates certain practices in financial record keeping and reporting for corporations. These scholarships are funded through monetary penalties collected as part of PCAOB enforcement actions.
The PCAOB Scholars Program seeks to benefit students who are likely to become auditors and to make a difference to students who might otherwise choose a different career path. Students must be selected and nominated by their university.
“I am so proud of Diana, Alexandra and Ivenn for being recognized with this award,” said NIU Department of Accountancy Chair Brad Cripe. “These three students are dedicated to becoming ethical accountants, and I cannot wait to see the wonderful work they will do with the help of these generous scholarships.”
All three students will be new graduate students in NIU’s accountancy program this fall, but they are already Huskies. Both Paramo and Alexandra Gomez earned their bachelor’s degrees in May, while Diana Gomez will earn hers in August.
Ivenn Paramo, who originally hails from the small town of Minooka, Illinois, happened upon the field of accounting when he was researching math-centered careers.
“I looked up careers that relied on math — my best subject — and accounting was one of the first results,” he said. “I took my first class during my senior year of high school, once my teachers emphasized the importance of trying to find a career path for ourselves. I found the class came easier to me than most in that class and decided to stick with it through college.”
This fall, Paramo will be starting his first semester of graduate school in hopes of graduating with his Master of Accounting Science in spring 2025. He plans to study and sit for the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam.
Diana Gomez grew up in Carpentersville, Illinois, and when she took an accounting course in high school, she realized she enjoyed making journal entries and making sure they were balanced.
“My future career goals involve interning in an audit position and then trying a tax position,” Diana Gomez said. “I don’t like to limit myself when learning more, so I aim to gain as much knowledge as possible from both sides. I am excited about what’s to come soon, as I’ve secured an audit intern position at Plante Moran for next summer.”
Alexandra Gomez grew up in Aurora, Illinois. A quiet kid, she considered becoming a lawyer until her high school accounting class changed her mind.
“Although I did originally enroll at NIU as a finance major, I found that after taking my first accounting course that I enjoyed learning more about accounting and the possible careers available with an accounting degree. After switching my major, I decided that I wanted to work in public accounting and planned on becoming a CPA,” she said.
Alexandra Gomez hopes to one day work at a public accounting firm under their tax service line. She also plans to become a CPA so that she can eventually become a manager and sign off on tax returns.
“The goal is to eventually have enough experience to open my own accounting firm so that I can help the businesses and individuals in my community,” she said.
Paramo noted that NIU faculty made an impact on his undergraduate experience.
“Our professors have years of experience,” he said. “The professors are always open to talk regarding any career or academic questions a student may have. The NIU accountancy program also has spaces specific to accounting students that I visited frequently, which helped me focus while working on my work in between classes.”
All three recipients agree that receiving this scholarship has been a very meaningful experience.
“This PCAOB scholarship means so much to me,” said Diana Gomez. “It will allow me to focus more on my education, which is a huge financial relief, and I am grateful for it. I am also very determined to achieve my goals, so receiving this scholarship will boost my energy to accomplish more tasks in my career path.
Paramo echoed his gratitude. “The PCAOB scholarship means a lot to me because it reaffirms that my efforts can be seen by others,” he said. “Sometimes the outcome of hard work is difficult to see, but the opposite is shown from receiving the scholarship. It allows me to be more financially stable after graduating.”
