THE WRIGHT WAY
When Bailey Wright is in , she ’ s all in . This smart , energetic accounting student works hard at whatever she takes on , be it education or career preparation or pastime .
Wright began at Mississippi State without a major , but she soon found accounting was a good fit . Now a senior , Wright is an ASAC Ambassador and a member of Beta Alpha Psi . She holds a 4.0 GPA , is enrolled in MSU ’ s Shackouls Honors College and is also a member of the Phi Kappa Phi and Beta Gamma Sigma honoraries . She is due to graduate this December – a semester ahead of most of her classmates .
“ The accounting program does a good job of teaching us what we need to know and also preparing us for our professional careers ,” says the Pascagoula , MS , native . “ The internship program is great – they connect with a lot of firms and really encourage you to participate .”
Wright attended four summer leadership conferences in 2016 , exploring firms in Birmingham , AL ; Jackson , MS ; Memphis , TN , and Nashville , TN . She was able to interview at some of the conferences and has accepted a spring 2017 tax internship with the Jackson firm .
Wright intentionally got a jump on the internship interview process , which typically takes place during the fall , to help keep her full autumn schedule manageable .
She serves as President of the MSU chapter of the Accounting & Financial Women ’ s Alliance , an organization for which she was a founding officer in 2014 . It now boasts about 75 members . The group focuses on connecting with professional peers as well as active community service , such as tax preparation assistance for low-income families .
“ Our main project this fall was the ‘ Professional Perspective ’ event , where we invited accounting professionals representing different types of careers to speak about their jobs and about how women can succeed in the accounting world ,” Wright notes .
The accounting major is also an artist .
“ I ’ ve sung since I was young , and I knew I ’ d keep it up in college ,” says Wright , who participated in national and state honor choirs in middle school and high school . “ Without it , I wouldn ’ t be nearly as happy as I am .”
She is a member of the Mississippi State Singers . As the university ’ s premiere vocal ensemble of about 50 members , the choir requires a commitment to three practices a week . While the group is composed of both voice majors and non-majors , it was Wright who was tapped as the soprano soloist in Fauré ’ s “ Requiem ” performed last February with the Starkville-Mississippi State University Symphony Orchestra . She also took part in the Singers ’ spring performance tour in Austria and the Czech Republic .
After graduation in December and her spring internship , Wright plans to start on her master ’ s degree and complete it by May of 2018 . No doubt she will continue to go all out to succeed . When asked how she manages to do so well in so many areas , her modest reply comes back :
“ Scheduling helps . I ’ m an extensive planner !”
22 BULLDOG LEDGER