Irvington resident uses education, leadership skills to land his dream job

IRVINGTON, NJ — Darnel Burnette has hit the ground running after his recent graduation from Centenary University in Hackettstown, landing his dream job with Big 4 accounting firm Ernst & Young. A resident of Irvington, Burnette earned a Bachelor of Science in accounting and business administration, a challenging 150-credit program that prepares Centenary graduates to take the CPA exam immediately after graduation.

As an undergraduate, Burnette sometimes took up to 22 credits per semester to complete his degree on time. He also participated in a professional internship in the auditing and tax departments at Nisivoccia starting last summer. For good measure, Burnette bolstered his demanding schedule with leadership activities, such as serving as Student Government Association president and as a team member of Enactus, the university’s nationally recognized competitive business team. The result: A full-time job offer with Ernst & Young working on the firm’s assurance and audit team in Hoboken.

“The education that Centenary offers is really broad. I’ve taken courses in marketing, accounting, finance and more,” said Burnette, a first-generation college student. “Within accounting, I’ve studied real estate, taxation and auditing. I feel like that will give me more versatility in the job market.”