Cal State Fullerton College of Business and Economics accounting junior Samantha Cruz-Araujo ’26, who is in an audit internship this summer with accounting firm RSM US, is the proud recipient of a $10,000 scholarship from the RSM Foundation. Only 14 business and technology students receive this recognition each year.

Cruz is active as a member of Beta Alpha Psi, an honor society for finance and accounting students and professionals.

“As a first generation and transfer student at CSUF, receiving the RSM scholarship felt like a dream,” says Cruz. “Higher education has always come with financial stress and uncertainty for me, but this award has lifted that burden and allowed me to focus on building my future. The pursuit of education should never be tarnished by financial pressure, and I’m incredibly grateful to no longer face that barrier.”

2024-2025 was Cruz’s first year at CSUF after earning her associate’s degree from Saddleback College in South Orange County. In the past few years, the School of Accountancy at Cal State Fullerton has built powerful and versatile transfer-focused relationships with the Orange County community colleges, ensuring students such as Cruz are ready to lead and grow as accounting professionals even before they graduate.

“I’m especially thankful for the accounting program as it has equipped me with the tools to seek out opportunities like this and connected me with professionals who truly value and support hardworking students. This experience has been life-changing, and I hope more students take advantage of the incredible resources available at CSUF,” she says.

Vivek Mande, director of the School of Accountancy, emphasizes that Cruz’s award speaks to the attainability, accessibility and high caliber of CSUF accounting education. “There is no better opportunity to earn a respected, versatile and in-demand accounting education for an affordable price and an unparalleled network,” says Mande. “Students such as Samantha have a great future ahead of them thanks to their hard work, the mentorship of professors and industry partners, and our ever-evolving commitment to academic rigor and extracurricular experiences.”

Cruz’s accomplishment is at least partly due to the support of Business Career Services, which has developed versatile relationships between the college and industry partners such as RSM, ensuring students have a clear path to career success and the college has the industry insights needed to stay focused and trendsetting in today’s technological and regulatory landscape.

“This is a tremendous recognition of Samantha’s hard work, leadership and potential, and a proud moment for the College of Business and Economics,” says Jon Serafin, employer relations associate for Business Career Services. “A huge thank you to RSM for their continued investment in student success and for providing such impactful opportunities to future business leaders.”

For more on accounting education at Cal State Fullerton, read more of our articles on CSUF accounting.