Nick Nemergut took a circuitous path to St. Francis, having enrolled in two other colleges before landing in Brooklyn Heights. But he found a home at St. Francis College, on the links with the golf team and in the classroom with the accounting department.

A native of Goshen, Connecticut, Nick entered St. Francis College as a senior, earning an undergraduate degree in professional studies. He then enrolled in the MS in Accounting program, graduating this year.

Although he hadn't played collegiate golf before arriving at St. Francis College, Nick had been around golf virtually his entire life – he played on his high school team and worked at a golf course for eight years -- and jumped at the chance to join St. Francis College's Division I team. Once his eligibility to play ran out, he stayed on as the team's assistant while he completed his degree.

Nick recently reflected on his St. Francis College career and what's next for him.

How did you arrive at St. Francis College?

I transferred into St. Francis College my senior year. I played golf for the team for two years and then I got my master's degree [in accounting].

I'm actually a double transfer. I started off at UNC Wilmington, North Carolina for two years. And then I attended College of Mount Saint Vincent in the Bronx for a year and I played basketball there. Then I found St. Francis.

How did you find it?

I found St. Francis because I was researching the golf team. I wanted to play. And as I researched the team, I realized St. Francis also had a great accounting program. That sealed the deal.

Why accounting?

I took accounting in high school and I definitely enjoyed it. I also took it at Mount Saint Vincent. St. Francis was great because they made it possible for me to obtain a degree while also graduating on time even though I didn't have many accounting courses going into my senior year.

I think I like accounting because there are so many different options you can explore within it. You're not just confined to one job the rest of your life. I can go into tax, I can go into audit, I can go into general consulting. There's no reason that one day you can't open your own business or work in a completely different field than you ever thought would. I just feel like there are so many pathways.

What was your experience like in St. Francis College's Accounting department?

I thought St. Francis College had a great accounting program. The professors were all amazing to interact with. It was a very personal experience. The amount of support the professors give definitely makes a difference. They're there to answer your questions any time of the day and they want you to succeed, which is nice.

Is there a professor who stands out?

Dr. [Louis] D'Elia, definitely. I consider him a personal advisor. If I ever had questions about the future, about accounting in general, I felt very comfortable approaching him during his office hours and we would talk. It definitely helped a lot.

What was the best part of being on the golf team?

The connections I made. I made some lifelong friendships on that team. It's really awesome to have those connections now. I also placed 15th at our conference finals tournament last year. I was the NEC Scholar Athlete of the Year, and the St. Francis Scholar Athlete of the Year for the men. Just receiving those awards was great. I definitely think I made the right choice to going to St. Francis. Everything kind of fell into place.

You have a job lined up after graduation. What is it and how did you land it?

I looked on LinkedIn and I found a couple of jobs I liked. One of them offered me an interview. I loved its small company environment. It's five minutes from where I'm living right now [in Stamford, Connecticut]. I had been commuting about an hour and 30 or 45 minutes to St. Francis at least three times a week. So my new commute will be a nice change of pace.

My job is an associate fund accountant position. I'll be working in the fund administration, private equity department. The company is called Alter Domus, and I start in July. I'm excited.

How does finishing your St. Francis College career feel?

It's amazing. It's definitely been a long journey. I actually started off as a music major [at UNC Wilmington] and then I made some big transitions. I'm glad that I chose accounting at St. Francis. It's definitely a relief right now knowing that I have a degree. I'm glad that it's over, but I'm going to miss the process. It was fun.