Ready to Begin My Beyond

So it’s back to school for me. How did that happened?

Well it certainly was a drawn-out process because I knew for about 2-3 years that I wanted to go back to school and earn an MBA. However, due to various life events (that I will call the “happening period”) — marriage, birth of my first child, work, etc. — it seemed that I would have to wait a little longer to fulfill this goal of mine. I’m glad things worked out the way they did because now the timing is right for me and my family.

I wanted to get an MBA to: 1) acquire knowledge and skills I can immediately apply in my current position; 2) help increase my visibility within the organization; and 3) have the flexibility to grow my career and adapt to the new global work environment.

During the “happening period,” I took the time to research various MBA programs and tried to find the one program that was the “right” fit for me. I researched MBA programs online, reviewed magazines/newspapers (US News & World Report, Forbes, Financial Times, NY Times) and spent a lot of time on the UNC Kenan-Flager website.

I talked to couple of colleagues who completed an MBA while working and I was also fortunate to have other colleagues who are currently earning their MBA at UNC. In addition, I attended an event put together by the Kenan-Flagler staff to learn more about the MBA experience at UNC, and in the process I met some very enthusiastic alumni who really helped solidify my decision to get an MBA there.

Finally, I looked into my company’s support for people who wanted to further their education while on the job and started talking to my manager about my goal to get an MBA.

Once I felt that I had enough information to make a decision, the rest was easy — and here I am writing this blog. I still have many questions about immersion weekend, classes, professors, classmates, etc.  I know it won’t be long before all the pieces of the puzzle come together. For now I’m just ready to ”Begin My Beyond.”