Author: Jennifer Walleman
This article originally appeared in the Fall 2025 issue of the South Carolina CPA Report
Jessi Davison didn’t set out to become a CPA — she set out to become an artist. But through curiosity, persistence, and a problem-solving mindset, she carved out a path that took her from intern to manager at Moore Beauston & Woodham and discovered a passion for accounting along the way.
Davison joined the firm as an intern in 2019 while still an undergraduate, working nearly full-time hours as she balanced hands-on experience in tax, bookkeeping, and client support with her college classes. From the beginning, she saw the internship not just as a résumé builder, but as a launchpad.
“I interviewed quite a few places, but I didn’t really feel like it was a fit,” Davison said. “I really wanted to find a place that felt like a good fit to me and somewhere I felt like I could be long-term.”
Her determination paid off: by the time she graduated in 2020, she had already built a strong foundation at the firm. She transitioned into a full-time role and, in April 2025, was promoted to Manager. Today, Davison finds the most fulfillment in working directly with clients.
“I really enjoy the client relationship aspect,” she said. “I’m definitely a people person, so I like doing a good job for clients. I get a lot of personal fulfillment out of them saying, ‘Thanks for taking care of this for me. You always do such a good job.”
Initially, Davison majored in studio art at College of Charleston. But as she considered long-term career options, she began exploring ways to combine her artistic mindset with something more structured.
“My dad is an attorney, and he’s been an attorney for most of my life,” Davison said. “When I was doing the studio art thing, my dad was like, ‘You really need to pick up another major. Art doesn’t always pay the bills. You need to pick something stable and steady.’”
Her ability to think creatively and navigate complex problems made her a natural fit for accounting. Diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age three, Davison said she’s long been used to solving real-world “story problems” every day.
“My dad has always referred to my diabetes as the never-ending story problem,” Davison said. “There’s always a new variable. There’s a new situation. ‘I ate this, I did this, I’m going to work out.’ You have to consider all these different things in the complex story problem. Accounting is a lot of the same way.”
She explored arts management, which led her to business courses. A business law class and an introductory financial accounting course quickly sparked her interest in accounting. At the time, she wasn’t quite sure what accountants actually did.
“Part of my hesitation at first was, I was like, ‘It’s just math,’” Davison said. “And I used to say, ‘I hate math.’ It’s not that I really hated it. It just wasn’t something I enjoyed doing. But accounting isn’t a lot of math. It’s more about complex problem-solving, which I’ve always enjoyed.”
Davison said that her financial accounting professor, Dr. Vandenburg, noticed her accounting potential.
“Dr. Vandenburg, was like, ‘You would do great at accounting,’” Davison said. “You seem to really understand the debiting and the crediting, and you seem to have a real knack for it.”
She was soon double majoring in studio art and accounting.
As Davison progressed through her accounting coursework, she knew she wanted real-world experience to test what she was learning. That mindset led her to pursue the internship at Moore Beauston & Woodham. It was an opportunity that shaped the trajectory of her career.
Since stepping into a leadership role at the firm, staying updated on the profession has become a necessity. As a member of SCACPA, Davison’s utilized opportunities to stay ahead of the changes in accounting.
She was first introduced to SCACPA as an intern. For Davison, that early introduction has helped her stay connected to the broader profession.
While navigating the path to licensure, Davison stayed in contact with SCACPA CEO Chris Jenkins to better understand changes to education and experience requirements.
“I see SCACPA as a benefit in just getting to connect with other people in accounting and being able to email someone and say, ‘Hey, I saw this law; how is that going to affect me?’ and have someone speak intelligently to me about it,” Davison said.
SCACPA paid off in other ways too. Davison received both the CPA Exam Bonus and Student Loan Assistance. These member-exclusive benefits help ease the financial pressure that comes with becoming licensed.
“I think it’s a great way to support new CPAs,” she said. “The exams are expensive, and not everyone has the flexibility to pay for them all at once. The support from SCACPA made a difference.”
Today, Davison remains committed to growing her leadership skills and supporting others in the profession. She encourages students to stay open to unexpected paths.
“The worst thing that can happen is you get the accounting degree and then you end up doing something else,” Davison said. “That’s what I would say to my dad, ‘What if I get this degree and don’t want to do anything with it?’
And he would say, ‘Well, then you go do something else.’”
That ability to be adaptable has shaped how she approaches her life today. While her professional path is firmly rooted in accounting, she hasn’t left her creative side behind.
Davison continues to create art as a personal hobby and is currently working on a custom painting for one of the partners at her firm.
“It’s still a part of who I am,” she said. “Accounting didn’t replace art. It just gave me a different way to think creatively.”
