Rider to Host the IRS Adrian Project for Students

Students from Rider’s College of Business Administration will once again work alongside IRS criminal investigation agents to crack a simulated white-collar crime case in this year’s Adrian Project on Friday, April 19.

The Adrian Project, developed by the Criminal Investigation Division of the IRS, is a daylong interactive experience in which students participate in a mock criminal investigation. Students have the opportunity to put their classroom knowledge to the test, using forensic accounting techniques to solve the case. Students also learn interviewing and surveillance techniques, document analysis, and participate in defensive training.

This year’s Adrian Project will also include eight students from Sayreville War Memorial High School in Parlin, N.J. This will be the second year students from the high school’s honors accounting program will participate in the program. Two of the high school students who participated in last year’s Adrian Project program now attend Rider.

After the success of including high school students in last year’s program, Special Agent Rob Glantz is hopeful that the simulation will help all of the students to think about their options after graduation. According to Glantz, the daylong event allows students to simulate work that usually takes IRS special agents about a year and a half to complete.

“The point is to help students see they have options,” Glantz said. “We want to open their eyes to many different career paths.”

For some Rider students, the Adrian Project may be a first look at their lifelong career.

“I always tell students not to limit themselves; they need to keep an open mind if they want to be successful,” Glantz said. “They need to look at everything and figure out what they want to do and then what that’s going to be like. That’s the kind of mindset we try to give the students with the project.”