When Lindsay Felix, Certified Accounting Technician, looks back at how her accounting career started, she still can’t quite believe how fast everything moved. In her last semester of college, while most of her classmates were preparing for their on-the-job training, she made a choice that would change her path entirely — she applied for a full-time accounting position even without a diploma in hand.
What gave her the courage to try? The NIAT certification she had earned the year before.
She passed all three NIAT exams in 2022, and to her, that wasn’t just a credential. It was confirmation that she was ready for more responsibility. “Passing NIAT early gave me confidence that I could handle the work,” she says. So instead of waiting for graduation, she sent out applications and hoped someone would give her a chance.
Three days after her interview with Thick & Thin Agri-Products Inc., she was hired — not as a trainee, but as an Accountant. She was still a student finishing her final semester.
“It felt like hitting two birds with one stone,” she says. “I was gaining real experience and starting my career at the same time.” At 21, she became the youngest person on her team, balancing a full academic load with full-time responsibilities. She would attend classes, rush deadlines, and still show up at work ready to handle general accounts.
That juggling act wasn’t easy. She had to learn fast, ask questions, and adapt to company expectations while figuring out her own style. But those challenges shaped her discipline. “Time management, curiosity, and persistence kept me going. I learned to take things one step at a time instead of overwhelming myself,” she shares.
That momentum didn’t stop after graduation. Two years later, the company fully sponsors her Supervisory Course at UP Diliman — a sign of how much trust she has earned since joining as a fresh undergraduate. Her role has expanded, her influence has grown, and she has become someone colleagues rely on when they need guidance.
She often thinks back to that turning point when she chose not to follow the traditional OJT route. “Everyone else was preparing for their practicum, but something in me wanted to try something more challenging. I wanted to prove that I was capable,” she says.
It helped that her motivation came from a deeply personal place. She grew up watching her aunt thrive in the accounting profession, and that early exposure planted the idea that accountancy could open doors in ways she didn’t fully understand at the time. Only later did she realize how powerful that path could be.
Now, she tries to pay it forward. When new employees need support, Lindsay is often the one her supervisor taps to train them. “I know how it feels to start with zero experience. If I can help someone through that stage, I’ll do it,” she says.
For her, the most fulfilling part of being an accounting technician is simple: “It’s knowing how far I’ve come and knowing that I’m contributing something meaningful.” Every step — from being an undergraduate applicant to becoming the youngest staff member to studying at UP which reminds her that none of it happened by accident. It all started with a decision to take a leap earlier than expected, backed by a certification that gave her the credibility she needed.
Ask her what message she has for students unsure whether certification is worth it, she answers quickly: “Give NIAT a chance. It can open doors sooner than you expect. It did for me.”
