“I chose accounting because I felt like it fit the way that I think,” she said. “I enjoy solving problems in a structured way, and I’ve always heard that accounting is the language of business.”

Nini’s resume already includes internships at EisnerAmper, Deloitte, and PwC, where she will begin working full-time after graduation as a tax associate in the firm’s New York City office.

“After dipping my toes into both audit and tax, with full-time offers from Big Four firms in each practice area, I decided tax was the right fit for me,” she said.

Finding the right environment

Originally from Israel, Nini moved with her family to Columbus, Ohio, when she was 8. She attended Columbus Torah Academy for high school, where she was also valedictorian, before spending a year studying at Tomer Devorah in Jerusalem.

Coming out of high school, Nini was a recipient of the Touro University/Orthodox Union Sarah Rivkah and Dr. Bernard Lander Memorial Leadership Scholarship, awarded to outstanding National Conference of Synagogue Youth high school graduates. Nini said she chose LCW because it offered the intellectually rigorous environment she was seeking without compromising the values that were important to her.

“Touro was the natural choice,” she said, “because academic growth did not come at the expense of my Jewish values.”

At LCW, Nini immersed herself in opportunities both inside and outside the classroom. She began as an associate on the Honors Board before ultimately becoming its chair, organizing events that exposed students to professionals and leaders from a wide range of industries.

“Mina Schulman is blessed with a rare blend of intellectual curiosity and charismatic leadership gifts, which deeply complement her desire for personal spiritual growth,” said Dr. Marian Stoltz-Loike, dean of LCW and Touro’s vice president for online education. “That has enabled her to enrich LCW in many ways and will allow her to flourish in her future professional and personal pursuits.”

Nini said members of the accounting faculty encouraged her intellectual curiosity and helped bridge the gap between classroom lessons and real-world business experiences.

“They would speak with me after class about how what we learned that day related to my internship experience,” she said.

She also credits LCW’s Office of Career Services with helping guide her professional development and connecting her with internship opportunities that played a major role in shaping her career path.

Building toward the future

Following graduation, Nini plans to become a CPA before eventually attending law school.

“My ultimate goal is to work at the intersection of business and law,” she said. “I want to build a career that allows me to bridge those two disciplines.”

She says the most important influence in her life has been her family, whose encouragement and support helped her throughout her academic journey.

“They are my biggest fan club,” she said. “They motivated me to keep going even when it was difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel.”