Scholarship helps Accounting major make sense out of college experience

Cy Overmiller ’22 has always loved a spreadsheet. But, when he decided to go to York College of Pennsylvania for his Accounting degree, it wasn’t so he could someday file tax returns and run the books for a growing business. Instead, he saw it as a needed skill to add to his plans for one day becoming an entrepreneur.

“To me, entrepreneurship is a mindset,” he says. “I get excited about finding inefficiencies in the market and filling that need and making money from that. Getting my degree in Accounting is building upon that mindset to give me the tools I need to be a successful entrepreneur.”

Choosing where he’d go to college also had to make financial sense. While a lot of students are financially conscious of how they spend their money, Overmiller did a cost-benefit analysis. He knew he could achieve a quality education at York College while saving money. What made the decision final for him was receiving a scholarship that helped lessen that financial load.

“I might not have considered college without the help of scholarships,” he says. “It just made sense for me when I knew I was making this investment.”

Running the numbers

Overmiller fell in love with numbers in high school. An avid gum chewer, he was spending about $1 a week on a pack of gum. While it might not seem like much, he says, $52 a year to a high school student is a lot of money. So, he did his research and found a place where he could get the same quality gum for 40 cents a pack.

He decided he would sell that 40-cent pack of gum to his classmates, many who were too young to drive, for the same $1 they would spend at the grocery store. While it started with gum, Overmiller’s business soon included candy and soda. For two years, he tracked his sales in a professional inventory system and monitored his daily, monthly, and annual revenue. “I didn’t really enjoy the sales part as much as I enjoyed reviewing inventory and analyzing my books,” he says.  

While he doesn’t run any business now, Overmiller is working in an internship as a tax accountant and saving money. He’s interested in investment real estate and hopes to save enough capital to invest in a business of his own.

The value of an education

Overmiller knows that employers are looking for qualified employees—and that often includes a degree. Beyond the investment in his education, Overmiller is building a portfolio of connections that he believes will help him when he’s ready to launch his future. “Building that network is one of the best things you can do in college,” he says. “There’s an incredible value in having those people who can help open doors for you.”

As President of the Student Managed Fund, Overmiller has met several area professionals, including the President of The York Water Company, who took a group of York College students to New York City to visit the Nasdaq building. He also sees his peers, often as hungry and interested in business as he is, as important connections.

“I found a lot of value in my education at York College,” he says. “It has turned out to be an investment that is well worth it to me.”