Meet Danielle Hennings

What is your chosen career path? How did you choose this career?

My chosen career path is to be an Auditor. I will become a Certifed Public Accountant upon completion of my degrees, exams and required work hours.

I chose this career while I was in high school, prior to knowing what exactly an audit was. I always had an interest in business, and I knew that there are a lot of growth and development opportunities within the financial services industry. Now that I am on my way to becoming an auditor, I feel very confident that I made the right choice. 

What have you gained from your internships with Deloitte?

Working in a professional environment has allowed me to grow as an individual. Having the opportunity to work as a part of a team has been a good indicator of what the rest of my career will be like. Participating in Deloitte’s Global Project Challenge as a part of my internship has allowed me to meet other interns and young professionals from around the world!

What have you enjoyed most about your internships with Deloitte?

Over those four summers, I really enjoyed having the opportunity to develop and grow within the firm. Managers who gave me more difficult tasks and more responsibility each time I returned, showed me that they valued me as an intern and as a member of the team. As I took more accounting classes at Penn State, I was able to return home and apply the knowledge I was learning to real life situations. I have also enjoyed interacting with all of the employees who work at Deloitte. Whether a fellow intern, audit senior, manager or partner, everyone is very welcoming and willing to help and answer your questions.

What skills you have learned in your studies that prepared you for this internship?

While at Penn State I increased my accounting knowledge of key terms and concepts. I also developed key skills that have helped me during my internships, such as, the importance of working in groups and being a good team player, to not be afraid to ask questions of your peers or professors when you are unsure, and to manage my time wisely. Being actively involved at Penn State with various clubs in addition to a demanding school schedule, time-management is absolutely key.

How has your internship prepared you for university studies and/or full-time employment?

My internships have given me insight into what it will be like working full-time for Deloitte. Each summer I had the opportunity to work on real clients, and complete a number of tasks that will be a part of my day-to-day as a full-time Associate. During one of my internships, I completed training on all of the necessary steps to complete an audit. It was great having this knowledge before starting my Audit class at Penn State, as I could apply some of what I was trained on to the class project I had to complete.

University currently attending: Pennsylvania State University, USA

Degree: Combined Bachelor's and Master's in Accounting, August 2016

Internships with Deloitte: Four