Seniorās LU journey shows impact of Co-Op program
When 51ĀŅĀ× senior Maddy Rathsack's mother, Ann, a 2001 accounting program graduate, heard about LU's Cooperative Education program, she knew it could make a lot of cents for her daughter.
Maddy, of Manitowoc, Wis., will graduate from Lakeland this May in just three years with a bachelor's degree in accounting. She locked up a post-graduation job with CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA) in March of 2024 after the second of her three tax season internships.
The Co-Op program allows Lakeland students to earn academic credit working in full- and part-time jobs at companies and organizations while earning wages to help pay their tuition.
Students can earn up to 25% of their degree ā 30 credits ā through work, and that's exactly what Rathsack will do. She's also paid her tuition not covered by her scholarship from her wages while working. She will graduate with no debt.
Rathsack is one of a growing number of LU students maximizing the power of LU's Co-Op program.
From the program's start in the fall of 2018, Lakeland students have worked in more than 3,500 placements earning nearly 12,500 academic credits and working more than 668,000 hours. That's an average of more than 35,000 hours per semester, and LU students have earned $10 million in wages.
Rathsack has spent the last three springs doing a tax internship at CLA, completing more than 300 tax returns for various individuals, corporations and other organizations. She spent the summer of 2023 working as a full-time accounting intern for Broadwind Heavy Fabrications in her hometown.
Maddy is following in the footsteps of her mother, also an accountant. Maddy took an accounting course her sophomore year at Manitowoc Roncalli High School, setting her career path in motion.
"I liked it and kept going with it," said Rathsack, who got her first professional taste of accounting in high school when she helped manage the books at her dad's employer, Maritime Plumbing and Mechanical. "I've always been good at math. Finding something I was good at helped."
When it came time to find a college, Rathsack wanted to stay closer to home. Again, her mother played a big role as she learned about the Co-Op program and suggested they explore Lakeland. Then-Lakeland accounting professor Brett Killion visited Rathsack at her high school and laid out a three-year plan to graduation that included Co-Op, sealing the deal.
She will graduate with 143 total credits (120 are required) and she's taking master's level courses to prepare for the Certified Public Accountant exam. She'll start her full-time role as a tax associate at CLA in September.
"So many people wait until now to look for a job and they graduate in May," Rathsack said. "It was nice to have that all settled so early."
In addition to class and working, Rathsack was a member of Lakeland's Accounting Club, serving as president this year. She played a lead role in planning the annual Accounting Night event, which invites Lakeland accounting alums and employers who consistently hire LU graduates to campus to network with current students.
Rathsack recommends that all LU students consider Co-Op as part of their Lakeland experience for a variety of reasons.
"Co-Op lets you earn credits, get the experience in your field that you may not get by just going to class and get paid," Rathsack said. "It helps you learn on the job by seeing how everything plays out and how it works."
