Craig Miller at Louisiana State University

From the day I attended the first BCom (Internal Auditing) class at UP, I realised that the course was like no other I had done before. It started off with standard administration issues, but then we started to discuss what the course and the profession was about and I knew I had made the right career choice. I haven’t looked back since!

In our first meeting, the possibility of sending a student on a semester exchange programme to another IAEP Centre of Excellence was discussed. This was met with a lot of enthusiasm from the students, despite the hard work that would be required and the large price tag! I expressed my interest in the exchange programme to America with the staff of the Department of Auditing and tried to keep up-to-date with the status. As soon as it was announced that the exchange programme had been finalized and that UP would be sending a student to LSU, I knew I had the opportunity to apply for an experience of a lifetime! I did some research and applied for the exchange, along with 22 fellow students. After a grueling interview process, I was the privileged student to be selected. After the excitement subsided, I realised how much work there was to do! I had just over 3 months to raise the necessary funds, book the tickets, apply for a visa, make academic and other arrangements and most important of all, to complete my degree!

By 7 January 2010, everything had been organised and I boarded a plane to Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I had a week to settle into my apartment and learn about America and the Southern culture. I met 20 international students from all over the world who had also arrived. We realised once again how priviledged we all are and what an honour it is to be ambassadors in the USA for our universities and countries. It is an especially big honour for me to participate in such a highly regarded exchange programme.

I would like to thank the University of Pretoria, Louisiana State University and everybody who made this experience possible. Watch this space for an update on how things are going in LSU!