OSCPA student ambassador combines accounting and equine passions

By Cecilia Yontz, OSCPA marketing and communications intern 

Not every career presents the opportunity to blend two seemingly separate passions, but that’s exactly what Kelsey Harbour is hoping to do with accounting and horses. 

“If you can't be passionate about what you do, then you might as well not do it,” said OSCPA student ambassador Kelsey Harbour. “I'm passionate about horses and accounting. It's hard to pick one, so being able to do both and maybe one day combine those in a job keeps me happy, passionate, and motivated.” 

Harbour, a senior double majoring in accounting and English equine studies at the University of Findlay, has learned to find a balance between her extracurriculars and studies. 

“I've gone to three horse shows this semester,” she said. “During the semester it's kind of a chore because I'm gone for four or five days to go to a show and I still have work, but it's definitely a great break to go do what I really love and what I'm passionate about.” 

Last fall, Harbour attended OSCPA’s Accounting Careers Leadership Academy (ACLA).  She enjoyed the experience particularly because of the accounting focus.  

“I've been to a couple of career fairs we have at my college, but you tend to only see two or three accounting firms because it's geared toward other degrees or areas of business,” said Harbour. “So, it was awesome to be able to go somewhere where I could talk to so many people in the accounting profession. And you got to talk to them not only as an accountant, but as a person, which was nice to be able to connect to people on that level.” 

At the event, Harbour was awarded a scholarship courtesy of Marathon which she was “honored” to receive. In addition to the scholarship, there was an important lesson that Harbour took away. 

“There's no shortage of opportunities,” she said. “Sometimes I feel like we can get stuck in this idea of ‘if I don't have four internships and I don't have the most glowing recommendations, I won't be able to go get a good job,’ and honestly it showed me that's not the case. There are many people looking for talented accountants and plenty of firms that will take you with or without an internship.” 

After graduating this spring, Harbour hopes to obtain a summer internship before returning to school to begin a Master of Accountancy program.