Chinook Graduate and Junior at UM Headed to Ernst and Young in Denver for Prestigious Internship

Press release

MISSOULA—Chinook High School graduate Lily Surber, a junior at the University of Montana College of Business, is heading to Denver this summer for a prestigious internship at Ernst and Young. The internship starts June 10 and goes until July 26. Lily will be an Enterprise Risk Consulting Intern, helping clients design and implement risk management and internal control strategies to mitigate strategic, financial, operational, and compliance risks.

“Lily has been an outstanding student at the UM College of Business,” said Havre High School graduate Suzanne Tilleman, Sprunk and Burnham Endowed Dean at the UM College of Business. “Lily exemplifies a strong work ethic combined with academic and co-curricular engagement. Lily has a bright future and will learn so much during this internship at Ernst and Young.”

During her time at UM, Surber has been excellent both in and out of the classroom. She is the president of Grizzly Stomp Country Swing Dancing Club and organizes the Turning Point USA Chapter at UM. She also works as the Campus Ambassador for the Leadership Institute. After graduating next year, she plans to work full-time for Ernst and Young. She aims to earn her CPA license and return home to help her community. 

”I’m so glad I came to UM for my education. What I’ve learned here and the people I’ve met have been incredible,” Surber said. “This internship at Ernst and Young will help me advance my skills, which I can take back to the people and the businesses back home in Chinook.”

Last school year, UM College of Business students completed over 115 paid internships. On average, over 80% of business students participate in at least one internship before graduating. 

In a nationwide poll of accounting faculty, the UM undergraduate accounting program ranked 12th, and the master’s program was ranked 14th nationally among schools of similar size. Graduates of UM’s Master of Accountancy (MAcct) program pass the CPA exam at rates far above the national average, and 95% have jobs before graduation. The UM College of Business is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate College of Businesses (AACSB). It is one of only 856 institutions worldwide and the only school in Montana with a separate AACSB accounting program accreditation.

The UM MAcct program is now offered online to meet the huge demand for CPA-ready accountants. Students can now earn their MAcct from wherever they live and become CPAs.

For more information on the UM College of Business, people can visit https://www.umt.edu/business .