Celebrating the 2022 CFE Honour Roll recipients
Congratulations to all of our outstanding graduates who were named to the Honor Roll for the 2022 Common Final Exam (CFE)!
The School of Accounting and Finance is delighted to celebrate this outstanding achievement!
This year, we are proud of announce that 11 of our Masters of Accounting graduates earned this honour! This CFE is a challenging, 3-day exam to become CPA designated. We are proud to celebrate the success of our graduates and we are looking forward to seeing what all of our alumni do next!
2022 CFE Honour Roll recipients:
Alan Pang (MAcc '22)
Alan Pang currently works at PwC Bermuda as an Experienced Associate in Assurance. As a member of the Non-Life Hub, he primarily works with a wide range of Property Casualty reinsurers. Looking to the future, Alan will continue his academic and professional development by pursuing both the CFA and MBA designations in addition to obtaining his CPA. He will leverage the synergies generated by these experiences to generate value for all future clients across all aspects of business. In his free time, Alan likes to play the piano, gaming with friends, and plans on taking up windsurfing after the busy season.
To future CFE writers – The key to success is to be able to effectively recognize the pertinent issues, relevant standards, and applicable analyses. To this end, I believe it is crucial to develop a case writing approach unique to yourself instead of trying to follow anyone else’s. Through repeated practice, reflection, and lessons-learned, you will discover your personal flow in a case. Remember, trust the process, but also trust yourself.
Kelly Zhang (MAcc '22)
Kelly Zhang completed her co-op terms with KPMG Toronto in tax and assurance. She now works for Deloitte Calgary in the Business Tax group and is interested in integrating tax technology into her work. Outside the office, you can find her in the kitchen experimenting with new recipes, working on her website, or traveling around the world.
She is extremely grateful to her CFE study group, David Lin and Lianne Lai, without whose support and advice this accomplishment would never have been possible.
To future CFE writers, Kelly recommends participating and being engaged during class, and practicing what you learn. Keeping a tracker of attempted and debriefed cases is also crucial for staying organized. And lastly, try not to worry too much. As Dan says: "Trust the process!"
Emma Liang (MAcc '22)
Congratulations Emma Liang, the school is proud of you!
Joyce Wing-Yan Chan (MAcc '22)
Congratulations Joyce Wing-Yan Chan, the school is proud of you!
Peiyu Dai (MTax '22)
Peiyu Dai currently works in the International Tax Services Team at PwC Toronto office. Outside of work, she enjoys hanging out with friends as well as having some alone time.
Peiyu recommends future CFE writers to prepare their own study notes summarizing general responses to topics that are tested often. Once writers become familiar with those general responses, they could tailor the wordings accordingly when writing practice cases or the CFE based on actual case facts. Learning is a lifelong journey while completing the CFE is just a part of it. Thus, she also encourages writers to take some time to relax and try not to put too much pressure on themselves before the exam.
Dylan Kinkerran Thondee (MAcc '22)
Dylan currently works as a Senior Accountant at EY LLP in their Financial Services Organization whereby he focuses mostly on the banking capital markets. Outside of work, he enjoys playing soccer and video games with his friends, and loves going back to his home country Mauritius whenever he gets the chance.
To future CFE writers, he first recommends finding the approach that works best for them, and not worrying about what others are doing. Next, he suggests forming a study group whereby "for me, my friends helped me improve over areas I usually struggled with such as tax and audit". Finally, he would encourage everyone to have fun during this whole process whether it means taking a day off or going out with friends. It is essential to be always refreshed during this intense period of study!
Kristy Boys (BMath '04)
Kristy Boys currently works as the Vice President, Treasury at Granite REIT in Toronto. Kristy oversees all of Granite’s treasury matters including capital raising, intercompany financing, foreign exchange risk management, global cash repatriation and cash management. Prior to Granite, Kristy started her career in turnarounds and restructurings with a boutique financial advisory firm where she was responsible for managing daily cash flows, securing financing and strategic planning and execution. Kristy’s love for accounting and finance grew throughout her career and she decided to formalize her working knowledge by pursuing a CPA designation in 2019.
Kristy’s advice for all working professionals considering a CPA is that it is never too late to follow your dreams! Having a solid foundation of practical experience was her biggest asset when writing the CFE. Undertaking this designation with two children during a global pandemic, Kristy also relied on the qualities of perseverance and determination to make it through. Kristy received tremendous support from CPAO, her mentor, Teresa Neto, CPA, CA, and her many colleagues at Granite, without whom she wouldn’t have achieved this honour.
Talha Surangiwala (MAcc '22)
Talha Surangiwala currently works as an analyst at Deloitte within the Financial Advisory practice, assisting clients with valuations, transaction services and corporate finance. He also stays involved at the University of Waterloo as a teaching assistant and student mentor. In his free time he enjoys playing hockey and table tennis, travelling, and watching movies.
Talha recommends that all future CFE writers create a realistic study schedule that can be followed during the August study break. Writing and debriefing prior CFE cases is the best way to learn the commonly tested topics, and gain a thorough understanding of the study material. Take the time to review repeated topics from previous exams as they are likely to come up again in future ones. Lastly, remember that studying for the CFE is a marathon, not a sprint!
Zhenzhen (Heloise) Wang (MAcc '22)
Zhenzhen (Heloise) Wang currently works as a Financial Analyst at Rogers. She works in the Wireless Revenue business unit where she is involved in FPA and monthly closing process. Outside work, she enjoys travelling, playing badminton, and having good food.
Heloise recommends all future CFE writer to take time to debrief each case, develop your own notes, track your progress, and build your own strategy from day 1 of the journey. It is also important to spend time with yourself, family, and friends in order to recharge. Trust yourself and you will do great!
Congratulations to all our SAF graduates!