BETA ALPHA PSI
DELTA GAMMA CHAPTER
CANDIDATE MANUAL
FALL 2024
General Information
The Delta Gamma chapter of Beta Alpha Psi at USF has been ranked as a Superior Chapter since 1976
and is a recipient of the Gold Chapter award (the highest ranking available) for all years it has been
offered (15 years). We hold the longest streak for Superior Chapter ranking (47 years), and we are the
only chapter worldwide that has maintained the Gold Chapter Status since the award’s inception. We
truly are an elite chapter in this organization. These rankings are due to our hardworking members and
their outstanding involvement.
Becoming a member of Beta Alpha Psi is a three-stage process:
One Semester as a candidate. All candidates must enter the organization with a minimum 3.0
Accounting GPA and a minimum 3.0 Overall GPA. After one semester of candidacy, you will be
initiated into probationary membership as a “Newly Initiated Member.”
As a Newly Initiated Member, it is necessary to meet the requirements for “Member” to be
considered in Good Standing (MGS).
Member in Good Standing: Meet all BAP requirements as detailed in the Candidate and
Member manuals. Additionally, Newly Initiated Members will be subject to a GPA check
at the beginning of the semester following candidacy to ensure that a 3.0 Accounting
GPA has been maintained.
If you fail to meet these requirements, you will no longer be recognized as a member either
locally or internationally. Your letter of resignation, along with your membership certificate, will
be returned to the international headquarters.
As a Member of Good Standing you will be expected to maintain that status until you graduate.
Once you are a full member, there is only one classification of membership as long as you are in school --
“active”. Only those who have left the university for full-time internships may be considered inactive.
Dues & Transcripts
Dues
Dues for the Fall 2024 Semester are $135 for candidates. The candidate dues include a t-shirt,
professional name tag, local chapter dues, and headshot.
All dues must be turned into the Treasurer, Pooja Bhavsar. All dues must be received by 09/07/2024 and
are non-refundable per International Office policy.
Transcripts
GPAs will be checked at the beginning of the Candidate semester and again at the beginning of the New
Initiate semester. If your overall or accounting GPA should fall below the 3.0 requirement at the
beginning of the second semester, the candidate will be placed on probation. New Initiates on probation
will be subject to a GPA check at the beginning of their third semester at which point if his/her GPA is still
below the 3.0 requirement, the candidate will not be allowed to continue membership until the GPA
requirement is satisfied.
Candidate transcripts are due 09/07/2024 to the chapter advisors, Professor Jennifer Cainas and
Professor Luke Richardson. Official or unofficial transcripts from DegreeWorks or facts.org may be
submitted via e-mail to transcripts@usfbap.org.
Chapter Communication
Email and other sources of online communication are very important at the Delta Gamma chapter. Our
website, www.usfbap.org, is updated regularly for all of our events. Each candidate is expected to visit
the website and check their email on a regular basis for updates and other information. You will be
added to the Beta Alpha Psi email list, as well as a candidate email list for information that only pertains
to candidates. All of the sign-up sheets for socials, community service events, fundraising events, and
other activities can be accessed online.
We communicate internally through our website. You can access your attendance records, online sign
ups, committee manuals, contact information, and reimbursement forms through the website.
Attendance Requirement
Candidates are required to attend 75% of the meetings and socials throughout the semester for all Beta
Alpha Psi meetings and socials. In addition to 75% of the meetings/socials, there are also mandatory
events that must be attended by candidates. The Recording Secretary, Andrew Guerrero, is in charge of
attendance at meetings and socials.
Be sure that you sign in at all meetings and socials, otherwise you will not be counted as present for
those events.
If you arrive at meetings 15 minutes late or have to leave 15 minutes early, you will not receive credit
for attending that meeting. If you sign up for a social and do not attend, then, you will be given two
extra community service hours. You cannot attend a social that you did not sign up for. Contact the
Recording Secretary and the Social Chair at least 72 hours in advance to let him know that you cannot
attend the social will not result in an attendance deduction.
Candidates aspiring to achieve “Superior Candidate Status” must have a 95% attendance rate and meet
all other requirements. This accomplishment will be recognized at the Scholarship Banquet.
Mandatory Events
The events listed below are mandatory, but do not count towards the attendance requirement. If you are
unable to attend a mandatory event, please contact the Vice President, Mai Tran, at vp@usfbap.org.
Date Time Event
September 7 8:00 AM - 1:00 PM Leadership Conference
September 7 2:30 PM - 3:30 PM Career Fair Bootcamp
Week of September 15 Varies Mock Interviews
September 23 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM Meet the Firms
September 30 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM Accounting Career Fair
November 20 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM Grant Thornton Speech Competition
December 6 5:00 PM - 9:00 PM Scholarship Banquet
Recording Secretary: Andrew Guerrero, secretary@usfbap.org
Make-Up Policy
Anyone in danger of not meeting his or her attendance requirement may make up attendance points
from missed events with extra attendance opportunities that are offered throughout the semester. A
4-hour BAP sponsored community service event in addition to the mandatory community service
requirement may also serve as a “bonus” event to make up for attendance. All makeup events must first
be approved by the Vice President, Mai Tran.
Tutoring Hours
Each candidate is required to hold one tutoring hour per week, starting the week of 09/09/2024 at the
tables near the Lynn Pippenger School of Accountancy office on the third floor of the original business
building. The tutoring rules and policies are as follows:
NOTE: Tutors are expected to show up 5 minutes before their scheduled shift.
1. The Tutor must sign the lab manual in and out on the roster in the accounting office.
2. No one may sign in for the Tutor.
3. The Tutor must take possession of the lab manual at the time he/she signs in on the roster.
4. The Tutor must return the lab manual at the time he/she signs out.
5. Tutoring materials may not be left unattended at the tutoring tables if the next Tutor has not shown
up for their scheduled shift. The materials must be returned to the SOA Office.
6. The Tutor must maintain possession of the lab manual during his/her hour in the lab.
7. The Tutor cannot physically give the lab manual to students or let them copy from it.
8. The Tutor is financially responsible for any tutoring materials lost during his or her shift – no
exceptions.
9. The Tutor is NOT to help students with the Principles of Financial Accounting Practice Set
(Cybertext).**
**If a student complains about the policies, the tutor should refer the student to Professor Cainas
Make-Up Policy
A candidate needs to give 72 hours notice to the Vice-President or Tutoring Chair if they know they
cannot make their tutoring hour. Failure to give proper notice for an excusable reason will result in 2
make-up hours for every session missed. This means that a notice given at least 72 hours in advance will
not result in a penalty makeup hour. Even with notice, the candidate must make sure to serve their
missed tutoring hour. The tutoring logs are audited on a weekly basis. All make-up events must first be
approved by the Vice President.
In other words:
● Less than 72 hour notice - make up hour PLUS penalty hour (total of 2 hours) to be completed by
the following week.
● At least 72 hour notice - make up hour (total of 1 hour) to be completed by the following week.
If a candidate is unable to attend his or her regularly scheduled hour, he or she should first attempt to
swap tutoring hours with another candidate for that week only. Both the Vice President and the Tutoring
Committee Chair (Geoff Wilson - TutoringChair@usfbap.org) need to approve of the swap beforehand.
No penalty hours will be assessed for swapping a tutoring hour with another candidate.
Mock Interviews
Mock interviews are held each semester for candidates. This gives candidates an opportunity to
experience what upcoming interviews will be like and get constructive feedback from actual accounting
professionals. When the interview is over the candidate will receive feedback on their resume,
appearance, and conversation. Interview times are coordinated by:
Cameron Chiaramonte, MockInterviewsChair@usfbap.org
Mock interviews will be held during the week of September 16th. Candidates are required to participate
in mock interviews. Be sure to bring a recent resume and dress business professional for this event.
Beta Buddy
Each candidate will be given a Beta Buddy, who is a current BAP member. The purpose of Beta Buddy is
to give all candidates a peer mentor, who will help the candidates navigate through their first semester in
BAP. Every week, there will be Beta Buddy challenges where each Beta Buddy pair is encouraged to
complete to earn points. The top Beta Buddy pair at the end of each month will receive a reward. At the
end of the semester, the top three Beta Buddy pairs will receive prizes.
Community Service
The community service requirement for candidates is 12 total hours per semester. Eight hours of the
community service requirement MUST be met with BAP sponsored activities. A community service event
is considered a BAP sponsored activity if the sign-up is administered by the Community Service Chair
(cschair@usfbap.org) or executive committee. Another way to meet the community service requirement
is doing outside events and filling out an Independent Activity Report along with written proof of service.
Independent Activity Reports can be found online at USF BAP Community Service Webpage. Donating
blood is considered an independent activity and fulfills 2 hours of service. The Community Service Chair
is in charge of the sign-ups for service events, keeping track of attendance and submitting attendance to
the Recording Secretary. Sign-ups are available online.
Grant Thornton Speech Contest
Each candidate is required to present at the Grant Thornton Speech contest on November 20, 2024 to
fulfill his or her speech requirement. Attendance at the speech contest is mandatory for everyone in Beta
Alpha Psi.
Candidates’ speeches must be 2 minutes in length on any subject that is NOT accounting related. There
must be some visual component of the presentation (for example PowerPoint) and apparent
organization in the speech. If it is obvious that the speech has little or no preparation, credit will not be
given. The attire to participate in the speech contest is business professional.
Contact: Vice President, Mai Tran, vp@usfbap.org
Scholarship Banquet: Friday, December 6, 2024
Everyone in Beta Alpha Psi is required to attend the Scholarship Banquet at the end of each semester.
Professionals, professors, and scholarship recipients also attend the event. At the banquet, the Lynn
Pippenger School of Accountancy scholarships and Beta Alpha Psi awards are distributed. The attire for
the event is business professional and dinner is served.
Location: Tampa Palms Country Club
Committee Requirement
Candidates are required to serve on two (2) committees. The Vice President, Mai Tran, will assign
candidates to their committees based on the survey where candidates can list their committee
preferences.
Make-Up Policy
Anyone in danger of not meeting their committee requirement may use the following activities to make
up for their missed requirement:
1. Participate in another committee as determined by the Executive committee.
These activities are to make up for not fulfilling your Committee requirement. All make-up events must
first be approved by the Vice President, Mai Tran.
Workshop
Candidates are required to attend at least one workshop. Throughout the fall semester, we will host 2-3
workshops.
INSPIRE Mentor Program
This is an opportunity that is optional for candidates and members to receive a mentor, who is an
accounting professional in the Tampa Bay area. Mentors may assist their mentees with pursuing
internships, creating career goals, revising resumes, touring the mentor’s office, and developing
professional skills. The INSPIRE Mentor chair, Marina Calandra, will be sending emails with more
information pertaining to the INSPIRE Mentor Program.
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Committee Chair Contacts
Committee Name Committee Chair Name Email***
2021 Banquet TBA 2021Banquetchair@usfbap.org
APD/ Community College Outreach TBA accountingdaychair@usfbap.org
Beta Buddies Anthony Nguyen BetaBuddyChair@usfbap.org
Career Fair Bootcamp Tess Gates CareerFairBootcampChair@usfbap.org
Community Service Destin Lacquement cschair@usfbap.org
INSPIRE Mentor Alfredo Tinoco inspirementorchair@usfbap.org
Intermediate 1 Social TBA intermediatesocial@usfbap.org
Leadership Conference Dana Campbell LeadershipConferenceChair@usfbap.org
Meet the Firms Valeria Colon-Rivera meetthefirms@usfbap.org
Mock Interviews Cameron Chiaramonte MockInterviewsChair@usfbap.org
Pizzo TBA BAP.PizzoVolunteering@usfbap.org
Proctoring Zareef Akhand ProctoringChair@usfbap.org
Recruitment David Le RecruitmentChair@usfbap.org
Refreshments Adrian Perdomo RefreshmentsChair@usfbap.org
Scholarship Banquet Yamilet Maldonado-Rocha ScholarshipBanquetChair@usfbap.org
Socials Dua Bangash Social@usfbap.org
Tutoring Geoff Wilson TutoringChair@usfbap.org
Workshops TBA Workshopschair@usfbap.org
***Emails are case sensitive
Beta Alpha Psi Officer Contacts and Office Hours
Officer Position Name Email
President Yash Patel president@usfbap.org
Vice President Mai Tran vp@usfbap.org
Treasurer Pooja Bhavsar treasurer@usfbap.org
Secretary Andrew Guerrero secretary@usfbap.org
Reporter Andrew Moor reporter@usfbap.org
IS Director Aaron Do isdirector@usfbap.org
Name Day of the Week Time Location
Andrew Guerreo Monday 9:00 AM - 10:00 PM BSN 1203
Yash Patel Monday 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM BSN 1203
Andrew Moor Tuesday 9:30 AM - 10:30 AM BSN 1203
Mai Tran Wednesday 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM BSN 1203
Aaron Do Wednesday 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM BSN 1203
Pooja Bhavsar Thursday 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM BSN 1203
Everyone is encouraged to drop in whether you want to chat and get to know the officers or to
approach the officers with questions.