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Grad profile: “It was the best choice I ever made for myself”

Posted by Erin Elaine Casey on May 27, 2019 in Students, Alumni & Friends

BComm grad Eryn Green reflects on her time at the Rowe School of Business (Nick Pearce photo)


Most of us can relate to the desire to strike out on our own. For Bachelor of Commerce grad Eryn Green, adventure was top of mind when she chose Dalhousie.

Eryn grew up in a small town between Hamilton and Burlington, Ontario, where she worked at a summer Y camp as a counsellor for many years. “I was Sports and Archery Head, despite not being able to play any sports,” she jokes.

“I chose Dal because it was very far away,” she says with a smile. “I loved the idea of the mandatory co-op in the Commerce program, and my brother was here as well. We had a one-year overlap, which was a huge help when it came to getting to know Halifax.”

“I knew I wanted to do business,” adds Eryn, “but I fell in love with Halifax when we moved my brother in, and I wanted to be on the water. I knew it was a smaller program than a lot of the schools in Ontario. I was looking for small class sizes and being able to work with profs more closely.”

Her co-op terms not only gave Eryn work experience, they helped her discover what she really wants to do. All three were in accounting: the first with an airline, the second with a nuclear energy construction firm, and the last with Danyliw & Mann, a Canadian CPA and CA firm specializing in accounting, tax and business management for the entertainment industry.

“I kind of fell in love with the industry,” she says of her time with Danyliw & Mann, an opportunity that also gave her a bit of management experience. “The people were fantastic and I got to see the inside of an industry that people don’t know much about. It’s based in Burlington, and it’s the largest firm in Canada that does what we do. It had some nice perks—I got to go to a few shows and meet some clients, which was really fun!”

The co-ops helped Eryn decide to do a general BComm instead of majoring just in accounting. “Finding a job I was interested in made a huge difference.”

Eryn also volunteered many hours with the Commerce Society, starting as first year rep and moving on to DECA case competition rep, Cases and Conferences Chair and finally VP Academic. “It ended up being a lot more work than I expected,” she says, but I really loved it.” During this time, she was responsible for organizing four case competitions, three internal and one external, including the Atlantic Throwdown, the largest undergraduate case competition on the east coast. “We invited other schools to come and compete and we ended with a conference with over 130 people.”

Eryn also competed in one very important case competition: Rumble in the Rowe. “It’s fourth-year students versus MBA students. My team ended up winning, which was very satisfying.”

Her thirst for adventure is about to take Eryn even further from home. She’s moving to Australia for eight months to work with a family friend’s elementary school excursion company. “It takes kids to zoos, national parks, science centres and on other field trips,” explains Eryn. “I get to use my camp experience as well as my degree, which is a nice combination. I’m really, really excited.” After that, she’d like to come back and work in the entertainment industry again.

“I got to be part of a tight community here at Dal. Being part of the Rowe was a highlight. I always say it was the best choice I ever made for myself.”