Victor Souza made a promise to himself when he started at UMass Lowell: 鈥淭o work a little less and dedicate myself to getting involved, meeting new people, creating new relationships and helping people.鈥�
As a high school student in Peabody, Massachusetts, Souza worked up to 60 hours a week at Dunkin鈥� Donuts.聽
鈥淚 just worked and sent all the money to my family back in Brazil,鈥� says Souza, who was born in Salem, Massachusetts, but moved with his parents and brother to the town of Resplendor, in southeast Brazil, when he was 9. He lived there for seven years, milking cows on the family farm, before coming back to Massachusetts to live with his grandmother and attend high school.
鈥淢y family was going through some financial hardships, so we decided I鈥檇 come back to work and help them out, and also go to school,鈥� he says.
As an accounting student in the Manning School of Business, Souza fulfilled the promise he鈥檇 made to himself. He joined two student organizations, Manning and the Manning Leaders Council, and became a . He traveled to Nashville, Tennessee, for the Association of Latino Professionals for America national convention.
鈥淢y experience at UMass Lowell has been stellar,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e have this incredible group of hardworking people. I鈥檓 just so happy that I was part of it.鈥�
Souza, a first-generation college student, got plenty of professional work experience along the way. He landed summer internships at Big Four accounting firm Ernst & Young (EY) after his sophomore and junior years. As a senior, he interned in the audit department at the accounting firm LGA in Woburn, Massachusetts.
鈥淚t was a totally different experience than EY, but it was great to get that perspective. It will definitely help me make an educated decision about which path to take down the line,鈥� says Souza, who was recognized by the Boston chapter of Financial Executives International as UML鈥檚 鈥淥utstanding Senior.鈥� He also received a $5,000 scholarship from the Massachusetts Society of CPAs Educational Foundation.
With his degree in hand, Souza is returning to EY for another summer internship before taking a trip to Brazil to see his family. He then plans to focus on taking the CPA exam.
The weekend before Commencement, Souza crossed an item off his bucket list by skydiving with friends in Maine.
鈥淚鈥檝e always liked adrenaline, and roller coasters weren鈥檛 doing it anymore,鈥� he says.
After making it safely back to the ground, Souza says he had a new perspective on his road ahead.
鈥淕raduating college and going out in the real world, especially in the times we鈥檙e going through now with the pandemic, can seem scary,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut I鈥檓 treating it like the jump: I鈥檓 not going to stress about it. I鈥檓 excited. I鈥檓 ready to take it on.鈥�