Denecia Sea
Senior Manager
EY
Milestones
My road in life has been direct.
Completed my undergraduate in accounting at NC A&T (including 6 month study abroad in Australia). My career goals were to travel as much as possible and earn my PhD in accounting.
I applied for an international accounting internship working oversees. I was denied. I interned with a Big 4 Accounting firm locally in NC.
Started my graduate program at MSU. I was recommended for a prestigious position with the FASB staff in CT. I was not going to apply, but a mentor encouraged me to seize the opportunity.
I graduated from MSU with my MS in accounting. I was accepted as member of the FASB Staff and moved to CT. That experience reshaped my career goals and lead me to join EY.
I joined EY in 2014, within our technical accounting advisory services group. Prior to my time in CT, I did not even know this role existed at the big 4 firms.
I was promoted to Manager in 2016. In 2017, I was offered the opportunity to work for 24 months in our London capital markets group. In my role I worked in Milan, Budapest, Germany, and England!
I retuned to US in 2019 and was promoted to my current role as a Senior Manager.
Keep following my journey
Education
High School
Career
Senior Manager
I advise international companies on accounting and reporting matters.
Career Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Travel
Entrepreneurship
Problem Solving
Day to Day
I typically work with a team of 3 to 6 EY team members. we work on specific technical accounting projects that vary across accounting topics and transaction types (i.e. IPO, bankruptcy, merger etc.) My primary goals at work is to building strong relationships with my clients through quality work.
Advice for Getting Started
Here's the first step for everyone
Sit for the CPA Exam sooner rather than later. It's better to get that out of the way before your first busy season if possible.
Recommended Education
My career is related to what I studied. I'd recommend the path I took:
Hurdles
The Noise I Shed
From Society in General:
"Accountants only deal with numbers, not real business issues."
Challenges I Overcame
First-Generation College Student
