Muhlenberg athletes are spending the summer of 2025 enjoying fantastic experiences on campus, in their hometowns, and across the country.

Rising senior softball player Sarah Hulsen, a double major in accounting and business administration, checked in with us for the second summer in a row. After interning in the finance department at Pfizer in 2024, she spent this summer as a tax intern at one of the largest accounting firms in the world.

This summer I have been fortunate enough to serve as a tax Intern on Deloitte's  private equity real estate team, where I have learned so much. Deloitte was founded 180 years ago and has been offering a wide range of professional services, some of which include audit, consulting, tax, risk advisory and more to their clients. It is one of the largest accounting firms in the world that has been making a major positive impact on the world for decades.

Throughout my internship, I have been working with the Multistate Tax Team to prepare tax returns, which include different tax forms that need to be validated and uploaded for review before they are sent to the client. This type of work is interesting because each state in the United States has its own tax rules and regulations as well as its own type of tax forms that are used to file taxes. There are many different tax deadlines, in addition to different tax rules, that must be met so that companies are not penalized and they stay in compliance with the law. This is why during my internship I am learning the importance of these practices, especially the importance of different tax laws in different states.

I was also given the opportunity to attend Deloitte University in Dallas, Texas. There, we attended classes to learn about our business chemistry, which is a way for us to understand how we work in the professional world, while also learning how we can work with others that may have a different work style. There were also many networking opportunities that allowed us to expand our connections with people that work all over the country through team building and other events.

So far, this experience has been incredible. I have learned so much about taxes, why Deloitte performs these services for their clients, and the importance of these services. In addition to this, I learned so much about myself and the career I wish to pursue in the future. I learned that being an accounting major was exactly the major I needed to pursue and what I see myself doing the rest of my life. I love how you must think critically to solve problems, which helps ensure the accuracy of financial reporting.

After my internship last summer, I have continued to learn the importance of growing connections with people because it showed me that people are always there to help you when you ask for it. In addition to this, having a strong foundation in finance from last summer helped me tremendously in understanding these difficult tax concepts.

I am so excited for what the future holds after this internship, and I look forward to continuing my journey in tax accounting with the skills I have learned so far!