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Donatas Rackauskas was born and raised in Lithuania where he was a basketball star in his hometown of Alytus. After graduating from high school, Rackauskas had to decide between pursuing his education or playing professional basketball. His parents wanted him to pursue an education. Much to his delight, Rackauskas learned that he could go to college and pursue his dream of playing professional basketball.
A number of top universities, including North Carolina and Wake Forest, recruited Rackauskas because of his basketball skills After much consideration, he chose SMU for its academic reputation, strong business program, small campus, and strategic location in a big city with plenty of professional opportunities.
Once he arrived at SMU, Rackauskas had another big decision to make: picking a major. After hearing how tough the competition is to get into the Cox School of Business, Rackauskas accepted the challenge and decided to pursue his BBA.
During his time at Cox, Rackauskas studied financial consulting and found his calling while in Professor Carolyn Dreher's accounting class.
"The way Professor Dreher presented the material was so interesting because she gave us the feeling that we are actually in the real world working on the business projects," he said. "All our assignments were related to real-world issues, which really got my attention and made me want to learn more."
Rackauskas also said that the accounting professors did an excellent job of preparing him for success in the accounting field, and he credits them with giving him a strong start.
While keeping up with schoolwork, Rackauskas also played basketball for SMU in hopes of eventually playing professionally. A serious knee injury led him to focus more on academics.
"This made me understand the importance of academics in your life. While you can lose your athletic ability with injuries, you can never lose the academic accomplishments that you achieved," he said.
Rackauskas received his BBA in December of 2005 and graduated in May 2007 with his master of science in accounting degree. With his goal of receiving a quality college education completed, he has set his sites on passing the CPA exam and will begin working at KPMG as an auditor this fall.
"I am very excited about my job with KPMG," he said. "I've been in school for five years and I'm ready to apply my knowledge. The audit position gives me a great opportunity to learn more about the industry and grow as a professional."
Rackauskas credits the Cox School with preparing him for the future as almost all of his classes used problems related to the real world, making him feel that he can handle most of the situations he will face in the workforce.
"I'm a strong believer that once you decide what you want to do, nobody can stop you from accomplishing your dream," he said. "With hard work and determination, you can achieve any goal."
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