Last summer, graduate accounting student Zara Ishaque brought her classroom knowledge into the field through a Georgia County Internship Program (GCIP) internship with Cobb County’s Internal Audit department. The experience was unlike any she had encountered in her previous tax and accounting roles. Over the summer, she completed an audit from start to finish, applying professional standards and working alongside county auditing staff at every stage.

A Mercer University graduate with a Bachelor of Business Administration, Ishaque was preparing to begin her master’s degree in accounting at the University of Georgia (UGA) when her advisor flagged the opportunity with Cobb County. She was not entirely new to local government — she had worked with politicians in Gwinnett County and completed a public policy internship with Mughal Strategies + Global Partners, which gave her exposure to government budgeting and financial planning. Still, the depth of the internal audit department’s work was something she had yet to experience firsthand. Through her internship, Ishaque learned even more about local government operations and the extensive work of the internal audit department.

Ishaque served as a key team member on the annual internal audit of Cobb County P-Card purchases. She participated in every step of the process and ensured that the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) Global Internal Audit Standards were applied throughout. Ishaque began her work with a preliminary survey of the county, conducting interviews with key personnel, assessing risk, and gathering the information needed to shape an effective audit plan.

After creating an audit plan to formally outline the scope, methodology, and timeline, Ishaque began the fieldwork phase. She compiled a dataset of over 23,000 purchase records — large enough to maintain a statistically robust sample — and used data analytics tools to identify P-card violations, including unauthorized merchants, weekend purchases, and excessive transaction amounts. She then assigned weights to each violation based on severity and combined them into a composite risk score for each card.

Such detailed purchase analysis allowed Ishaque and the audit team to identify recurring violations, forecast high-risk activity, and develop actionable recommendations for the county. “I learned how to apply what I had learned from the classroom and got to utilize it in practice,” Ishaque reflected. The internship also gave her hands-on experience with professional auditing software. “I learned how to navigate different programs such as TeamMate, OnBase, and Works in a short time, which is important for any auditing job,” she said.

Beyond improving her technical skills, Ishaque said the internship strengthened her confidence and sharpened her professional mindset, which she described as learning to “think like an auditor.” She was a meaningful contributor to the team and the success of the audit, but her favorite part extended beyond the work itself. Ishaque’s highlight of the internship was “not only being actually able to do an audit, but also networking with other departments and people…I interacted with several departmental staff that all welcomed me with open arms.”

Ishaque capped the summer with a final presentation of her findings to Cobb County staff. “I really tried to soak in every recommendation and piece of advice given to me,” she said. The experience opened her eyes to a career in county government, which was a path she hadn’t fully considered before. With plans to graduate from UGA in May, Ishaque leaves Cobb County with new professional relationships, sharper technical skills, and a clearer sense of where her career is headed.