At over 10,000 students, UTD’s biggest school JSOM is an immense battlefield in which students and their endless student organizations fight to win acclaim. This year, one JSOM club managed to win the title of organization of the year while sticking to its specific academic niche. The Accounting Club, as the name implies, deals with papers, calculations and balance sheets — it is not a club necessarily associated with excitement. Yet, this year TAC managed to stand out.
On April 11, TAC received the annual Outstanding Worthy Leaders Involved Exceptionally — better known as OWLIE — award for student organization of the year.
The nomination process, finalist selection and ceremony is overseen by the JSOM Dean’s Council, a group of students that organize various programs and events on behalf of dean Hasan Pirkul. Any student, faculty or staff is allowed to nominate clubs or individuals for awards, and the winners are voted on by JSOM faculty and the students of the council. Since spring 2015, JSOM has adopted this convoluted awards process as a tradition to honor standout students, faculty, staff, alumni and student organizations.
Meghana Vendala, accounting master’s student and TAC vice president, said she believes part of why TAC won this year is because they have grown into a unique space for peer-to-peer development under their mentorship program.
“We have really seen great change in the mentorship program,” Vendala said. “That’s something we have kind of struggled with in the past, and we have great mentor-mentee interactions.”
Members have nominated TAC for the award for the past three years; however, this is the first time they’ve received any actual recognition. Although accounting isn’t the most glamourous field in business, TAC has been able to incite curiosity in students outside the major. Students outside of TAC, like finance sophomore Aradia Arkadhar, are starting to notice the club despite having no long-term interest in accounting. Arkadhar said he is impressed by the organization’s ability to connect different fields together in a more practical environment.
“With accounting, I really only think of people who are passionate about accounting and everything that’s related to it, people who want to pursue that in the future,” Arkadhar said. “Personally, I may not be in that field, but I did enjoy taking the class.”
Accounting junior Brianna Poone, who serves as TAC’s vice president of communications, said she focuses on collaborating with other groups in JSOM to help bring different social circles together.
“Planning the socials has been really fun and fruitful because it’s been able to unify people of all different majors,” Poone said. “Being able to plan socials like that where there’s a lot of publicity helps accounting have more exposure, but also gives students the time to network with other students as well.”
Socials for most clubs are a way for people to connect and wind down, and the accounting club is no different. In addition to networking with other students, TAC is also connecting students with professionals, which accounting junior Nour Bitar said was a huge advantage when trying to break into the field of accounting.
“We get the opportunity to learn so much about different companies, [with] so many workshops and recruiters [coming] to a lot of the meetings,” Bitar said. “They provide so much information, and it helps you prepare for the future.”
When Bitar was asked what makes TAC stand out, she pointed out the knowledge and preparation the club provides for those looking into a future in the field. The organization’s ability to find professionals that are willing to talk to students is one of the most significant factors leading to TAC’s success.
Those interested in joining the club can follow TAC’s Instagram page @utdtac and find out more information by staying updated on its monthly calendar.
