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Ostine Swan

Senior Manager, Diversity Programs and Relationships
AICPA (that's us)
Durham, NC

 

Years ago, Ostine Swan was stumped by something she’s never forgotten: a tricycle. She was gift-wrapping items for her part-time job, and no matter where she looked there just wasn’t a box to fit it.

In some ways, you could say the same about her career since then. It doesn’t fit into a box, and that’s just the way Ostine likes it. “I have been told that a CPA can be expected to have at least nine careers,” she says. “So far, I have had four.” She started in public accounting with a Big 4 firm, then worked in government, then business and industry, and now she’s with a not-for-profit organization. All these journeys have exposed her to different things, from Fortune 500 executives to exotic foreign locales, and she’s met great people all along the way.

Now, as Senior Manager of Diversity Programs and Relationships for the AICPA, her days could take just about any shape, from answering emails to hitting the airport for an out-of-town conference. After hours, you might find her sitting on the beach with a favorite book, golfing or giving back to the community by serving on boards and committees focusing on at-risk students and senior citizens.

So you could never draw a box around Ostine’s life now, or her career. But it’s not hard to see the foundation it’s all sitting on: “The keys to my career success,” she says, “are my accounting degree, my professional experience and graduate education and my CPA certification.”

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