While studying for her Accountancy degree at SMU, Ms Sylvia Stephanie Zhao Chan also took on the hefty load of studying for examination papers which lead to the ACA certification (Chartered Accountant). Sylvia is the first undergraduate student in Singapore to achieve the Financial Accounting and Reporting - Joint First Place and the Spicer and Pegler prize at the recent March 2019 Professional Level examination.

According to Sylvia, her good grades surprised her. She was overseas until mid-January and thus did not have much time to study for the exam. She then decided to take Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR) since the topic was somewhat covered in SMU and thus she was more familiar and this made it easier for her to revise for the topic in less than two months. She said, “I planned my study schedule all the way until the exam and although the journey was rough, it was worth it in the end. I've always considered myself average for most of my SMU modules (academics in general), so it was a bittersweet moment when I got my FAR results because I never expected it to happen to me. I am very humbled by the achievement”.

Sylvia adds, “The decision to frontload some of my exams comes from the fact that audit work hours can be long, and I may not have sufficient time or energy to sit for the exams once I start work.”

For Sylvia, she decided to maximise her university stint. She took a Leave of Absence (LOA) and went to the University of Hong Kong during the first semester of her fourth year. She completed her Accountancy Degree in January 2019.

Before she begins work with PwC in July, she is alternating between studying and travelling – travelling to reward herself for all the studying, and to spend time with her family and friends. When in Singapore, she studies, teaches tuition, and does some part time projects. She also returns to her CCA – SMU Archery – to coach and interact with her juniors.

Sylvia’s plan for the next three years is to complete her ICAEW (Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales) exams and become a Chartered Accountant. She says, “I am entering into the line of audit which has challenging hours, but I hope I have prepared myself well enough to persevere and stay as long as I can. I am hoping that the audit exposure to different businesses will allow me to see how they operate and gain knowledge on how everything works.”

For future undergraduates, Sylvia had this advice to share, “One thing I’ve learnt at SMU is to not pitch yourself against others; follow your own timeline and be at peace with the decisions you make even if it takes slighter longer to reach your goals. During this process, be bold enough to take the road less travelled, and have faith that everything will turn out fine in the long run. I wouldn’t be where I am if not for the decisions I made – LOA, extending school, taking a break these few months – and I’m really fortunate that my school has given me the support and advice I needed. Not following the convention definitely seems daunting, but you can’t expect to reap any reward without taking risks. During your time in school, learn from your surroundings and experiences and work on knowing and improving yourself. If anything, Archery has taught me to not give up without a fight.”

“We are very proud of Sylvia’s achievement. As the first Singaporean student to emerge Global Top Scorer for Financial Accounting and Reporting at the ACA professional examination, Sylvia’s achievement is a strong affirmation of the academic rigour of our Accountancy programme and bears testament to the proficiency of our students and graduates.” – Lee Kong Chian Chair Professor Cheng Qiang, Dean of School of Accountancy.

Congratulations once again to Sylvia for achieving outstanding scores at the ACA Professional Level examinations.