Accounting major cuts time to acquiring CPA

By Mark Muckenfuss

Coming out of high school, Lucie Nepacena knew she wanted to be an accountant. 

Inspired by her grandfather, a Filipino immigrant whose career as a bank accountant allowed him to work in Japan for a while and provided the means for him to help his eight siblings immigrate to the United States, Nepacena was determined to pursue the same profession. She was also pretty sure she wanted to attend a California State University, but not many campuses had accounting majors.

Most CSUs offer a business administration degree with a concentration in accounting. Only Cal States Monterey Bay, Dominguez Hills and Los Angeles currently offer specific bachelor’s degrees in accounting. And, at the time Nepacena was looking, CSUMB was still awaiting approval to add the major to its roster of degrees. 

But Professor Shaowen “Sharon” Hua convinced her that CSUMB was the right place. 

“I came to Admitted Otter Day, and I went to talk to Sharon,” Nepacena recalled. “She had so much information prepared. She was a really driving force for my choice.”

Now a senior, Nepacena, who comes from Concord, is not only on track to transition into a full-time job with an accounting firm when she graduates in May, but she is also preparing to take the first in a series of exams this semester to become a certified public accountant. The accounting major, she said, has cut years off the time she expected it would take to begin her career.  

“I was planning to take classes after graduation to [qualify] for the CPA exams,” she said. “Everyone I know who went before me had to get a master’s, which is a lot longer and costlier.”

Instead, she’s getting what she needs in the space of a four-year program. She said she’s grateful not only for the more focused education, but also for the support she’s gotten. Hua, Nepacena said, was instrumental in connecting her with an internship at BryMar CPA, in Watsonville. She also helped her with her resume and interview preparation. 

“The program here is very career-focused,” she said.

During her time as an Otter, Nepacena hasn’t confined herself to the College of Business. CSUMB is known for its wealth of clubs, but she felt one more was needed. In the fall of 2024, she founded and remains president of LitMatch, a club focused on women’s literature. It became a bigger success than she anticipated. 

She recalled the first meeting of the club. 

“I was expecting it to be five of my friends that I forced to come,” she said. “But we had [about 30] people in the room. When we had our first event at the Maker Space, I expected 10-15 people to show up. We actually had to turn people away because we were going to violate the fire code.”

At the end of the year, she said, “We won best new club. That was exciting.”

It’s only one aspect of the social environment she has enjoyed as a student. 

“I’ve met a lot of amazing people,” she said. “I like the campus community. You have to work a little harder to find your niche here, but it’s there, and it’s cool.”

She’s taken advantage of the area beyond campus as well. 

“I love hiking, and this is one of the most beautiful areas for that,” she said. 

She feels she made the right decision by choosing CSUMB.

“I definitely came here and got what I wanted,” she said. “I feel I’ve grown into adulthood here in a way that I’m proud of.”