Melissa J. Sawyer

Senior Associate Director/Operations Manager, Undergraduate Career Development, Pulsifer Career Development Center

Melissa Sawyer is Senior Associate Director/Operations Manager and dedicated Career Coach for the Accountancy, Corporate Finance and Accounting (Accounting Focus), Data Analytics, Information Systems Audit and Control, Mathematics, and Actuarial Sciences majors for Undergraduate Career Development in the Pulsifer Career Development Center. Sawyer has more than 20 years of experience working in higher education in various functions encompassing career services, admission, financial aid, fellowship programs, and registrar’s office. She has developed strong relationships with staff and faculty throughout Bentley’s campus while collaborating on various programs for her majors. Sawyer has established solid partnerships with employers who actively recruit the students in her area of focus. Additionally, she oversees the relationship between the Pulsifer Career Center and Handshake and Big Interview. Sawyer looks forward to meeting with students to help them evaluate their interests regarding major and career path and in developing the skills necessary to acquire the positions they desire.

Prior to working at Bentley, Sawyer worked in career services with law students at Western New England School of Law and held various positions at Cornell University prior to and during graduate school. She has a Bachelor of Arts from John Carroll University and a MEd from Kent State University.

Dedicated Career Coach for the following majors:

  • Accountancy
  • Actuarial Sciences
  • Corporate Finance and Accounting (Accounting Focus)
  • Data Analytics
  • Information Systems Audit and Control
  • Information Technology in Accounting
  • Mathematics

Fun fact:  Melissa has traveled to 18 countries in the past 18 years (and more prior to that)!  Traveling with her husband and son is one of her passions and their most recent adventure was to go to the Galapagos Islands.  Melissa looks forward to many more stamps in her passport in the future!

Favorite part about the office: Working with the amazing students – Melissa truly enjoys watching them grow, develop and achieve their goals.  Seeing the smiles on students faces when they receive their internship/full time offer is the best!

Junior & Senior Appointments:

Please schedule an appointment via Handshake (Career Center > Appointments > Schedule a New Appointment > follow remaining prompts).

All Posts

Explore Mathematical Sciences Courses at Bentley University

Want to know more about the math classes Bentley University offers? Explore the course descriptions for Mathematical Sciences to learn more about pre-requisites and the concepts you can study. Although all of these classes aren’t offered every semester, they provide a good overview of the types of classes you can take if you study Mathematical Sciences at Bentley University. Bentley also offers a variety of accounting, finance, economics, and statistics courses related to mathematical and quantitative topics.

By Melissa J. Sawyer
Melissa J. Sawyer Senior Associate Director/Operations Manager, Undergraduate Career Development, Pulsifer Career Development Center
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Entry Level Accounting Jobs – What You Need to Know [Video]

In this video, corporate controller and licensed CPA Bill Hanna, who has over 15 years of experience in the accounting and finance industry, discusses the different entry level accounting jobs you can have with a four-year college degree, including responsibilities and salary expectations for each role.

By Melissa J. Sawyer
Melissa J. Sawyer Senior Associate Director/Operations Manager, Undergraduate Career Development, Pulsifer Career Development Center
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Sign up for Wolf & Company’s Shadow Day! Deadline to apply is 2/28/23

Wolf & Company is hosting their first Shadow Day Program on March 6th, 7th, and 8th from 10:00am – 2:00pm.

Undergraduate students are invited join them in their Boston Office for a day to gain insight into Public Accounting and potential career paths. Throughout the day students will have opportunities to network and hear from folks in their Audit, Internal Audit, Tax, IT Audit, and Compliance groups. Lunch will be provided as well as light refreshments in the morning. In hopes …

By Melissa J. Sawyer
Melissa J. Sawyer Senior Associate Director/Operations Manager, Undergraduate Career Development, Pulsifer Career Development Center
Read more

Scholarship Applications are Open for MassCPAs! Deadline Extended to February 24th!

Scholarships are available for accounting students – all YOU need to do is apply! MassCPAs has awarded over 300 scholarships to aspiring CPAs, ranging from $2,500 – $10,000 and totaling more than $1,500,000 since 2006…you could be next!

Click HERE to apply.

The deadline to apply is extended to Friday, February 24, 2023. 

Please note: To be eligible to apply, students must be a student member of MassCPAs and the AICPA. To become a student member, click here.

To learn more …

By Melissa J. Sawyer
Melissa J. Sawyer Senior Associate Director/Operations Manager, Undergraduate Career Development, Pulsifer Career Development Center
Read more

Accounting: Pick Your Path Virtual Career Fair Expo

Join MassCPAs, the Connecticut Society of CPAs, and the Maine Society of CPAs on Friday, March 31, from 12-2pm, for Accounting: Pick Your Path, a virtual career expo!   You’ll connect with career resources and network with accounting professionals representing a variety of career paths, including:

Corporate accounting
Education
Entrepreneurship
Forensics accounting
Nonprofit
Public accounting/audit
Public accounting/consulting
Public accounting/tax
Technology

Don’t miss out on the chance to build connections and meet your potential future employer – register today! if you have any …

By Melissa J. Sawyer
Melissa J. Sawyer Senior Associate Director/Operations Manager, Undergraduate Career Development, Pulsifer Career Development Center
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Aetna/CVS Health Hartford Actuarial College Day

For the past 3 years, the Aetna actuarial hub in Hartford has held a virtual College Day where strong actuarial underclassmen (freshmen, sophomores, and juniors) are invited to the recruitment hub to learn about the company and network with peers and Aetna actuaries. This half-day-long event includes presentations such as an overview of Aetna’s internship and full-time programs, speed networking with full-time actuaries, a health insurance case study, and informational sessions about the health insurance field.

This year, Aetna/CVS Health …

By Melissa J. Sawyer
Melissa J. Sawyer Senior Associate Director/Operations Manager, Undergraduate Career Development, Pulsifer Career Development Center
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Want to be Featured on the MassCPAs LinkedIn?

MassCPAs wants to feature you! MassCPAs’ Meet Our Student Members feature is a great way to be recognized for your hard work. They’ll feature your spotlight on the MassCPAs’ LinkedIn page, which has over 2,500 followers! Getting a feature is quite simple — just fill out this form!

By Melissa J. Sawyer
Melissa J. Sawyer Senior Associate Director/Operations Manager, Undergraduate Career Development, Pulsifer Career Development Center
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Mass Life Science Center Data Science Internship Opportunity

The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center Data Science Internship program focuses on increasing the availability of data science talent in the life sciences. The program is intended to provide opportunities for intern exposure to advanced data analytics and data science applications to the life sciences. Prospective interns must demonstrate proficiency in advanced analytics skills and technologies based on their work experience and/or academic training. Internships can be part- or full-time and can take place for companies any time during the 12-month …

By Melissa J. Sawyer
Melissa J. Sawyer Senior Associate Director/Operations Manager, Undergraduate Career Development, Pulsifer Career Development Center
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Apply to Insurance Cares’ DEI on the RISE Scholarship

Insurance Cares is providing a new scholarship opportunity for juniors and seniors in good academic standing who might be interested in pursuing a career in Insurance and identify as diverse (including but not limited to BIPOC, LGBTQ+, disabled, neurodivergent, other underrepresented groups). The DEI on the RISE scholarship provides the funds, tools, and mentorship for rising diverse talent to become the insurance stars of the future.

The scholarship funds can be used for all higher education needs (including books, and/or …

By Melissa J. Sawyer
Melissa J. Sawyer Senior Associate Director/Operations Manager, Undergraduate Career Development, Pulsifer Career Development Center
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Apply to the KPMG Tax Scholarship Program

KPMG designed the KPMG Tax Scholarship Program to help the next generation of talent by providing financial support to students who identify as members of a traditionally underrepresented racial/ethnic minority group(s) within the professional services industry.

Program Overview

Scholarships: Scholarship amounts vary and are based upon tuition cost at the university of attendance (up to $40,000)—allowing ultimate flexibility on where a student can pursue their master’s degree! A future full-time acceptance with KPMG Tax is required prior to funds being …

By Melissa J. Sawyer
Melissa J. Sawyer Senior Associate Director/Operations Manager, Undergraduate Career Development, Pulsifer Career Development Center
Read more