Warrington student wins inaugural scholarship for those interested in pursuing accounting careers

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Warrington College of Business student Brody Mandelbaum was named among the winners of a national scholarship for students pursuing careers in accounting. Mandelbaum is one of three students from across the United States to win the inaugural $10,000 Forward Fund scholarship from Xero, a cloud-based small business accounting company.

“It was great to win this scholarship!” said Mandelbaum (BSBA ’23). “Xero is a really interesting company as it works at the intersection of finance, technology and entrepreneurship, so it’s been really exciting to not only win the scholarship but also to have access to some fascinating people within the company.”

Scholarship nominees were judged based on essays about why they are interested in pursuing a career in accounting and how they believe the profession will evolve in the future.

“Understanding how money flows through a firm is a fundamental skill and so I think that forward looking, the value accountants offer will come from their advisory services as more basic tasks are automated,” Mandelbaum said of his winning-essay response.

Mandelbaum is a rising sophomore majoring in finance at Warrington. He is involved with the Gator Student Investment Fund, most recently as a Healthcare Analyst, helping to manage the fund’s $750,000 assets under management. He is also a consultant for TAMID Group, a John V. Lombardi Scholar and previously served as Florida State Region II Vice President for the Future Business Leaders of America.