Yu Qian (Mandy) Lin

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2015 Professor Harry Simons Endowed Undergraduate Scholarship for the Study of Accounting Recipient

Biography: Yu Qian (Mandy) Lin is a fourth-year student, double-majoring in Business Economics and Psychology, with a Minor in Accounting. She was born in Fuzhou, China, and later moved to Vancouver, Canada. Her Chinese and Canadian cultural upbringing allows her to be open to new ideas and willing to accept new challenges. While being a diligent student, Mandy tries to maintain her work-life balance. She enjoys her on-campus part-time job, her research experience, and her club activities. When given the opportunity, she would like to travel and try new things such as skydiving and scuba diving. In her free time, Mandy enjoys going to the gym, reading, and drawing.

Future Plans: Mandy expects to graduate in June 2016. After a graduation, she plans to complete the CPA exams and go to graduate school for Master of Science in finance. After that, Mandy plans to pursue a career in the financial services area.

What does the scholarship mean to me?: I am honored to be a recipient of the Professor Harry Simons Endowed Undergraduate Scholarship for the Study of Accounting award. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the donors of the scholarship and Professor Harry Simons. The scholarship alleviates my financial burden to pay for the out-of-state tuition and it also allows me to devote more time to my study and extracurricular activities at UCLA. This award recognizes my past achievements and motivates me to continue my dedication to achieve even more. From the bottom of my heart, I would like to thank the donors of the Professor Harry Simons Endowed Scholarship for this reward.

Heather Lee

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2015 Jeffrey W. Baus ’59 Scholarship Recipient

Biography: Heather Lee is a third-year Economics major with a Minor in Accounting. She is involved in various student organizations and holds several leadership positions including president of Future Business Leaders of America – Phi Beta Lambda (FBLA-PBL). In addition to academics and extracurricular activities, Heather has participated in several professional undergraduate case competitions, for one of which she and her team was a finalist. In her spare time, Heather enjoys volunteering, watching football games, and spending time with her friends and family.

Future Plans: This upcoming summer, Heather will be an intern at PwC in the assurance practice. Upon graduation, she hopes to continue her career at PwC as an associate while working to become a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). In the long term, Heather hopes to continue her educational journey by pursuing a Master in Business Administration (MBA) and gain a better understanding of the business realm and global economy.

What does the scholarship mean to me?: I am extremely thankful and honored to have been selected as the recipient of the Jeffrey W. Baus ’59 Scholarship. Mr. Baus was a partner at the prestigious accounting firm PwC and I am excited to begin my professional journey on a similar path. This scholarship will allow me to focus more on my academics and extracurricular activities while relieving some of the financial burden of higher education. I am eternally grateful to Mr. Baus for his generosity and support and I hope that one day I will be able to give back to the community just as Mr. Baus has given to his.

Gregory-Joseph Lasala

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2015 Harold R. Mortenson Endowed Scholarship Fund Award Recipient

Biography: Gregory-Joseph (Joe) Lasala is a Senior Business Economics student with a Minor in Accounting. While at UCLA, he has found his passion for accounting. He is determined to obtain his CPA within the next year after graduating. During his free time, he enjoys playing basketball, reading books, and participating in community outreach volunteer opportunities.

Future Plans: After graduating in Spring 2016, Joe plans to work at Deloitte in its Audit practice and take the CPA exam. In the future, he is also interested in pursuing a MBA and working as a financial controller.

What does the scholarship mean to me?: I cannot put into words how thankful I am to be selected as the recipient of the Harold R. Mortenson Endowed Scholarship Fund Award. This award greatly reduces the financial burden I have experienced over the last few years at college and encourages me to continue working as hard as I can to pay it forward someday. I am extremely motivated to ensure that I make the most out of the opportunity of being a UCLA student and that this award will help me for the rest of my Senior year. I want to reiterate that I am extremely grateful for this scholarship and will do my best to pay it forward.

Calvin Huyen

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2015 The Gumbiner Savett Inc. Scholarship Recipient

Biography: Calvin Huyen is currently a third-year student majoring in Business-Economics and minoring in Accounting. He was born and raised in the San Gabriel Valley area of Los Angeles County. Calvin is involved at UCLA with Beta Alpha Psi, a nationally recognized accounting honors society as their officer of compliance. He enjoys learning to cook new dishes, longboarding, and attending concerts. Having completed summer 2015 abroad, he has also grown to enjoy traveling, and wishes to be able to experience a multitude of different cultures and languages in his lifetime. Calvin is very humbled and gives many thanks for being awarded the Gumbiner, Savett, Inc. Scholarship.

Future Plans: Calvin plans to start his career in accounting and is still deciding between public and private accounting. After graduation, he plans to take the CPA exam as soon as possible to open up later career options. He plans to work for a few years before returning to school to get a MBA. He hopes that a MBA will allow him to try out a different career path, possibly in finance or consulting, build a strong network wherever he goes, and find work that is meaningful and fulfilling to him. In addition, Calvin hopes that future success will allow him to give back to future Bruins.

What does the scholarship mean to me?: This scholarship will reduce a substantial amount of my financial burden, enabling me to focus more time and effort into school than worrying about my personal finances. It means a lot to me because I will be able to enjoy my time in college more, and leave with a more manageable amount of debt. Because of this scholarship, I believe that it will be easier for me to find an internship that will transition into a full-time job after graduation, allowing me to fulfill my financial obligations. I am truly thankful for this award.

Zhenxiong Han

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2015 The Donald Edward Bragg & Diane Sims Bragg Scholarship Recipient

Biography: Zhenxiong Han is a senior double majoring in Business Economics and Applied Mathematics, with a Specialization in Computing. Born and raised in China, he enthusiastically explores the world of quantitative finance. During school time, he balances classes and extracurricular activities. Zhenxiong participated in the California Teaching Program and UMSA mentorship Program which enables him to share his experience and knowledge with younger students. In summer 2015, he had an internship at China Investment Securities, through which he gained practical experience on stock analysis. He is conducting independent research on game theory with Professor Meyer-ter-Vehn

Future Plans: Zhenxiong will finish his degree in June 2016 and is currently applying for Master of Financial Engineering programs. He then prefers a position in quantitative analysis for an investment banks or hedge fund. After five to ten years, he would like to start up a financial company to implement his own trading models.

What does the scholarship mean to me?: It is my honor to receive The Donald Edward Bragg & Diane Sims Bragg Scholarship for the 2015-2016 academic year. I am grateful for the recognition of my school work and past achievements. The scholarship reduces the financial burden on my family and me, and, therefore enables me to focus more on pursuing my academic goal. This award also inspires me to further contribute back to the community. I want to express my deepest appreciation for The Bragg Family, for their consideration and generosity.

Heather Goryoka

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2015 The Boeing Company Scholarship in Economics Recipient

Biography: Heather Goryoka is a second year at UCLA majoring in Business Economics and minoring in Accounting. During the school year, Heather works for the Fink Center for Finance and Investments at the UCLA Anderson School of Management. She additionally holds roles on the luminaria committee for Relay for Life at UCLA and the community service committee for Kappa Delta sorority. Last summer, Heather worked for UCLA’s Department of Economics to launch the marketing campaign for the Master of Applied Economics program. Heather is originally from Agoura Hills, California, and enjoys hiking, cooking new recipes, and being surrounded by her friends and family.

Future Plans: Seeking opportunities to apply her studies into a practical setting, Heather is excited to spend her summer participating in Summer Leadership programs with KPMG, Deloitte and EY. She has always enjoyed seeing a practical application of numbers and this concept drew her to the career of accounting. After graduation, Heather plans on taking the CPA exam. She also hopes to secure a public accounting internship to continue growing within the field. Her interests span throughout the entertainment, technology, aerospace and consumer products industry. Heather would like to pursue a MBA degree one day and, hopefully, return to her Bruin roots at Anderson.

What does the scholarship mean to me?: I am extremely grateful to be awarded The Boeing Company Scholarship in Economics. I am humbled to be recognized for my leadership and academic passions. As the youngest of three girls, I am grateful for this scholarship because it will allow me to focus on my passions and continue working toward my professional and academic goals.

Raul Fonseca

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2015 Chair’s Discretionary Fund Award Recipient

Biography: Raul Fonseca is a fourth year majoring in Economics with a Minor in Film. He is a first generation college student of Mexican descent. At UCLA, Raul has had the amazing opportunity to learn many things through coursework, internships and extracurricular activities. His favorite part of UCLA, though, has been the wonderful and inspirational people he has met who encourage him to strive for even greater things. During his spare time, he enjoys playing soccer or basketball, traveling, watching anime, and learning new things.

Future Plans: Throughout college Raul has interned for EY, The Walt Disney Company, and is currently interning for Amazon.com. After graduation he hopes to work somewhere where he can learn and always be challenged. A few years after graduation, he will either pursue a MBA or go to graduate school for education.

What does the scholarship mean to me?: I am truly grateful to be selected as the Chair’s Discretionary Fund Award recipient. Words cannot express how thankful I am to receive this award and I know it will play a pivotal role in reducing the financial burden for both my parents and me. I hope to give back to those in need in the future and pave the way for future students just like this scholarship has done for me.

Dhanawat Darakananda

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2015 The Ralph and Shirley Shapiro Scholarship Recipient

Biography: Dhanawat Darakananda is a fourth-year Business Economics and Financial Actuarial Mathematics double major, with a Minor in Accounting. He is pursuing both College Honors and the Economics Departmental Honors Program, as part of which he is writing his Honors thesis on developmental economics and human capital accumulation. He is the president of the Undergraduate Economics Society and an active member of many professional student organizations. Over the summer of 2015, he interned at Cornerstone Research, an economic and financial consulting firm. Outside of school and professional development, he enjoys traveling, hiking, and reading. He is incredibly honored to have been awarded the Ralph and Shirley Shapiro Scholarship.

Future Plans: Dhanawat plans to return to Cornerstone Research after graduation. As financial consulting work requires in-depth knowledge of accounting and finance, he is preparing for and planning to take both the CPA and CFA examinations. After a few years in consulting, he is considering pursuing a MBA or a business Ph.D. In the long term, he believes that family, friends, and new experiences would shape his professional ambitions.

What does the scholarship mean to me?: I am extremely grateful for the generosity of Mr. and Mrs. Shapiro. This scholarship not only helps to reduce my financial burdens, but it is also recognition of my academic achievement, which pushes me to keep on working hard. I cannot explain in words my gratitude to the Shapiro family. I would like to thank my family, friends, and everyone at the Department of Economics for their support. This scholarship will, indeed, allow me to devote my time to academic and professional development during my last few quarters at UCLA, especially the Honors thesis and last few accounting courses for the CPA exam.

Tony Wu

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2016 Patricia and Harry L. Bruce Endowed Scholarship Recipient

Biography: Tony Wu is a senior Business Economics student. When he was 16, he moved to the U.S. from Hong Kong and attended Pasadena City College before transferring to UCLA. He is very grateful for the Economics and Management courses offered at UCLA – especially the finance classes. He has internship experience at PR, social media, and public accounting. Last summer, he worked at a local LA startup as a financial analyst intern. Outside of academic and professional development, he is a beginner golfer and a great fan of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Future Plans: After graduation, Tony will start at a financial services firm in Los Angeles. After a few years, he is considering an MBA program. In the long term, he wants to be an entrepreneur and start businesses that help make the world a better place.

What does the scholarship mean to me?: I am extremely grateful for the generosity of Mr. & Mrs. Bruce. The scholarship not only helps my financial need during school but also teaches me the idea of giving back to the society. Being a beneficiary, I totally understand how much it helps me and means to me. This inspires me to be as generous as Mr. & Mrs. Bruce when I have the ability in the future.

Angelyn Teo

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2016 Venu and Ana Kotamraju Scholarship Recipient

Biography: Angelyn is a third year economics major with a minor in public affairs. She is passionate about economic research, particularly in research that can be used to inform public policy. She is currently working as a research assistant for Dr. Adriana Lleras-Muney, and has previously worked as a research assistant for Dr. Jernej Copic and in Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry. At UCLA, she is involved with Watts Tutorial Program. As the Finance Director, she applies for funding and manages the club’s finances, but she also proactively pushes for changes to improve the program.

Future Plans: In order to expand her research toolkit and econometrics knowledge, Angelyn is planning to pursue a Master’s degree in Economics after graduating from UCLA. Thereafter, she will be returning to Singapore to work at the Ministry of Trade and Industry as an economist, where she will be responsible for economic surveillance and conducting research to evaluate policies or answer policy-related questions.

What does the scholarship mean to me?: I am deeply honored and grateful to have received the Venu and Ana Kotamraju Scholarship. It serves as an affirmation of my hard work and motivates me to work even harder. It also reminds me of the importance of giving back to my community and I am determined to pay it forward in the future.