Moore School alumna utilizes her MACC degree to build career with notable companies
Alumna Georgia Keogh, ’17 MACC, credits her Moore School skills for her career at Ernst & Young and now Valvoline.
As a Kentucky native, Keogh says she chose the Moore School to further her accounting education so her future career could make an impact.
Keogh says the MACC degree was crucial to provide insight into what the auditing career path was truly about, considering most undergrad programs don’t offer courses specific to auditing.
“Prior to going through the MAAC program, I had not realized how impactful the work of an auditor can be on so many, if not all, aspects of a company,” Keogh says. “The Moore School, and specifically the MACC program, really helped me to understand just how big of an industry auditing is and how important the work is from a global standpoint.”
Earning her degree and passing over half of the Certified Public Accountant exam in 2017, Keogh started her career at EY as an assurance staffer in that same year.
“The skills I learned through the Moore School helped me at EY as I was involved in numerous company engagements — sometimes at the same time — and would be working in completely different financial areas,” Keogh says. “I can genuinely say that all the professors I encountered during the MACC program were very helpful and impactful in my journey after school and my career path so far. I appreciate how each professor had their own individual experiences and career backgrounds that they were happy to share with students.”
Now working as a senior internal auditor at Valvoline, Keogh says she works on the yearly expectations of completing SOX (Sarbanes-Oxley Act) testing to ensure the accuracy of financial data, prevent fraud and protect the company from legal repercussions. She also supervises several operational audits covering many subjects outside the company’s main transactional areas that include product pricing, warranty business claims and more HR-focused initiatives.
When asked about her advice for others considering pursuing a MACC degree, Keogh says that even if you are not certain of your career path, “do not let that stop you from increasing your education. Pursue all the things you can while you are in school and potentially have more time to dedicate to your education. I promise your degree will be useful in some way, like it was for me.”
Keogh sees a long future at Valvoline as she says she truly feels like she has found a company where she is valued and can grow.
“While I do still currently love my role in internal audit, the future may entail a career shift to another related department like accounting or finance; thankfully that’s another great aspect of working for Valvoline, they are very receptive to employee growth and giving opportunities to employees to serve the company how that employee best sees fit,” she says.
-Peyton Palazzo