Starting Out
Internships are one of the best ways for college students to gain practical perspectives on the ins and outs of fraud examinations. They can be a boon for students and employers and can even lead to permanent employment after graduation. The experiences of two former students, Ashley Davison and Gary Domermuth, at Siena College, outside of Albany, N.Y., are great testimonies to the positive reinforcement of classroom concepts practiced in the “real world.” Here are their stories – collectively and separately.
BEING READY FOR ANYTHING
One of our professors, Dr. Leonard Stokes, says in class “You don’t wake up to a red flag waving in front of you telling you that you’ll face an ethical dilemma or uncover a fraud that day.” As college students participating in summer internships we both experienced this first hand – finding something when we least expected it.
Learning about debits and credits in the classroom is one thing, but being able to apply that knowledge in real life is just as important – if not more so. Internships are an integral part of anti-fraud education, and they place a valuable perspective on a student’s education and career path.
Though we worked at both private- and public-sector entities, we learned we could have opportunities to spot potential frauds anywhere.