Svenya Stoyanoff

"My personal definition of outstanding is someone who can do it all and who puts their mind to many things and excels at what they do. Whether that's sports, school, relationships, or hobbies, you do a lot of things, and you do them well."

That standard has guided accounting major and distance runner Svenya Stoyanoff throughout her time at the E. J. Ourso College of Business, where she has built a résumé that stretches from the classroom to the track, from leadership roles to global experiences.

Svenya entered LSU on a biology track, but realized during her first semester that it wasn't the right fit. Switching to business and joining the E. J. Ourso College changed everything.

“Within the first few weeks, I was so engaged, and I really enjoyed all my classes and my professors, so I knew it was the right fit for me.”

That decision ignited a new passion for accounting, especially its combination of logic and creativity.

"My favorite thing about being an accounting major is the problem-solving nature of accounting. I love to do math, but I also like the theory behind it. And I also enjoy accounting because I feel like I can do anything with it. It's a very versatile degree."

To grow her skills, Svenya interned with Hornbeck Offshore Services in Covington, Louisiana. During the experience, she shadowed the CFO and other professionals to gain a thorough understanding of accounting and finance processes. She also contributed to improving the accuracy of financial reporting through data validation and reconciliations.

After earning a master's degree, she plans to gain experience in public accounting. Her ultimate goal is to work for a professional sports team or sports organization, merging a lifelong love of athletics with a business career.

As a Division I student-athlete in cross country and track and field, Svenya knows balancing academics with a demanding training and competition schedule isn't easy. Over time, that challenge taught her time management, resilience, and leadership under pressure — and she credits the experience as one of the best of her life, one that has developed skills she'll carry forever.

Athletics and academics also balance each other emotionally. "When school's stressful, I have my sport to rely on, and when my sport's stressful, I have school to be my outlet as well. It's a back-and-forth," she says. That mindset opened the door to experiences beyond campus, including a short study abroad program in Germany, where she put her minor to work as an informal translator for her classmates. Back at LSU, she brings the same energy to her involvement, representing her team on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) as a voice for her teammates to LSU Athletics, the SEC, and the NCAA, while also staying active in Beta Alpha Psi and community service initiatives.

At the Ourso College, she has grown into that vision.