Ukrainian War Refugee Finds Success as Applied Accounting Alum 

More digits, less words. 

That’s what Bellevue College alum Mykhailo (Myke) Kuzomka initially thought when he decided to switch his academics to accounting. Instead of his initial program of choice that heavily relied on English—a language Kuzomka was and still is learning today—accounting provided him the opportunity to work with numerals and math.  

“I like to work with numbers,” Kuzomka said. “I believe in the power of numbers.” 

That decision eventually paid off for the Seattle resident. In 2023, the 42-year-old earned his Bachelor of Applied Science in Applied Accounting from Bellevue College, graduating magna cum laude, and landing an internship and job at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), one of the largest accounting companies in the world, shortly after. 

“Bellevue College gave me not just an education but also working experience that I was able to refer to during the interviewing process,” Kuzomka recalled, noting that through the college’s Workforce Education program he worked as a payroll office assistant for 1.5 years as he pursued his degree.  

Today, Kuzomka attributes much of his success to Bellevue College’s flexibility and holistic care. But his educational journey hasn’t been without significant challenges.  

Not only did the father of three begin his degree in 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, but just three years prior he’d moved to the United States as a Ukrainian war refugee. Fast forward, in 2022, Kuzomka took a year off from his studies to volunteer with the Pacific Ukrainian Society to help those impacted by the Ukrainian war. Having lived in Ukraine during the war himself, Kuzomka knew all too well what the people of his home country were going through. 

“We had a very hard phase of war at the end of 2014 and the beginning of 2015,” Kuzomka said. “I visited Europe, Germany, and brought stuff for surviving—a special oven, a fireplace for surviving. We were prepared to survive during a long period because we were feeling very close to the circumstances. War increased every day.” 

Prior to coming to the United States, Kuzomka earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree in forestry and natural sciences. He’d been working as a forest manager in Ukraine and was often called upon to assist military on the front line, rounding up sand or handing over his own work vehicle on different occasions. 

As conditions worsened, he and his family made the complicated decision to move to the United States. Having waited two years after applying for his refugee status, they finally made the move.  

As Kuzomka searched for colleges that specialized in accounting but were also affordable, he landed on Bellevue College. He was grateful to learn some of his previous credits he’d earned from another college easily transferred over, saving him significant time and money. 

Kuzomka would go on to work toward his applied bachelor’s degree in a fully remote environment –– a path many students still have available to this day.  

“For me, personally, it was better to work at home, read, do notes, highlight something, because my English was not good enough to get all the information in a very quick communication in that moment,” he said. “But it was very helpful when I was trying to get a job, my online experience at Bellevue College, because all companies had switched to either a hybrid or working remote [environment].” 

After his gap year helping his fellow Ukrainians, Kuzomka experienced compassion and understanding from staff as he returned to the college. 

“I needed to bring in a document because I didn’t drop a class in the right way, but Bellevue College made a flexible decision, helping me in this case,” he said.  

Kuzomka expressed his gratitude towards the college for its support in helping him identify and prepare for a summer internship with PwC. He was particularly thankful for the college’s flexibility once again when he learned he could apply his internship toward his degree requirements instead of the typical capstone project.  

As one chapter closed, another began. Kuzomka graduated in the summer of 2023. He was offered a full-time position as a state and local tax associate at PwC that following September. Right around the same time, his 16-year-old daughter began at Bellevue College through Running Start, a program that allows high school students to earn both high school and college credit tuition free.  

Her current studies? More digits, less words.  

“She wants to be, at this moment, to go into the accounting field because it’s a very flexible field,” he said, adding that students can go into database analytics, business administration, finance, and more. “We have a lot of other colleges close to our home… but we chose Bellevue College. I think it was a winning situation for me, in truth, this college.” 

According to Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates, the Seattle, Tacoma, Bellevue area employs the most accountants in Washington state with the highest annual wage, $91,560.  

Bellevue College offers a variety of accounting associate degrees and stackable certificates in addition to its BAS in Applied Accounting. Students can study financial data reporting, bookkeeping, accounting information systems, finance, auditing, federal income taxation, and forensic accounting, among other areas of study within the program.