Passion, Professions and the CFE

Thursday, April 9, 2020
by Bill Lin, MAcc ’19

Bill Lin
I have always had a creative streak in my life. I love sewing, music, the arts— and I even used to be a piano teacher. However, I also love accounting and finance. If I’m being honest, taking the Common Final Examination (CFE) and making it onto the honour roll does mean a lot to me, but it hasn’t changed my mind at all with what I want to do in my professional career.

There are three main objectives I have for my professional career. The first being to work with technology startups to help them grow and succeed. Waterloo kind of brought out my interest in technology and innovation. Second, I also want to help artists and entertainers do the same thing with their careers. I want to see peoples’ ideas come to life and help make them super impactful in the community. One day I would like to pursue my artistic interests too. Third, during my professional career I would love to teach. I think getting that validation from the CFE reaffirmed that I am good at what I do, and I can teach one day. I want to help students along their journey towards becoming a Charted Professional Accountant (CPA). I think it would be amazing to help aspiring CPAs grow their knowledge and empower them to flourish in the workforce.

Like I said, achieving honour roll on the CFE didn’t exactly change the goals I had set for my professional career, but it is definitely a good reminder than I can be ambitious and carve out the perfect path I want for myself.