By Richele Ferretti
When I attended a university for a year, I had no connection with my instructor or fellow students. One of the reasons I chose Peninsula College’s bachelor’s program was that instructors are more accessible for one-on-one support. Despite classes being online, I was part of a close-knit community that allowed me to connect with my fellow classmates and enjoy a camaraderie with them. PC also allowed me the opportunity to complete my degree online while still being able to work full time.
Growing up I always felt self-doubt and fear about taking on a leadership role, and was convinced that I never had the qualities to be a great manager. This led me to shy away from leading projects at work because I feared I wouldn’t be successful. I decided to face that fear head on, which led me to enrol in the BAS program, where I discovered that I have a lot more leadership qualities than I realized.
One of the first things I noticed about (BAS Instructor) Dr. Rawley was that she had the passion for the course material she was teaching. She constantly challenged us to view the world from different perspectives. She cared about her students’ success and took the time to reach out to students when something seemed a bit out of the ordinary. Once, I was struggling with an assignment and ended up choosing to submit it after the deadline, but within my two-day given grace period, so I could finish the assignment even for partial credit. Submitting assignments late was not normal for me. Dr. Rawley took the initiative to email me to see if I needed any additional support or teaching guidance so I could be successful and complete the assignment.
Course material that was taught on the first day of classes was implemented throughout the program, up to the very last day of class. Even the group projects were teaching lessons of course material. Dr. Rawley empowers students to resolve their own group conflicts or issues to give some real-life practice with conflict resolution in a safe environment so we could handle ourselves better in the “real” world. She took the time to make the lessons real world applicable, while also entertaining and engaging at the same time.
Strategic Management & Policy (BAS 490) was my favorite course in the program, where we performed a simulation that helped us make top-down management decisions. It was a great opportunity to try something new and improve upon it. We had the opportunity to play the simulation with a group to collaborate, learn, and improve on each other’s individual strengths and weaknesses during our individual play-throughs. I ranked in second place for both the individual and the group simulation.
My BAS degree has helped me have the confidence to take on leadership roles in my current position. I have implemented what I learned from this program to improve within my current job, and to benefit future career growth.
The program has also helped me in furthering my academic goals by serving as a stepping stone toward completing a Master’s in Business Administration.
I would tell someone who is thinking about enrolling in the BAS program to trust themselves, and don’t run from the self-doubt or fear, face it head on! You’d be surprised what you might find out about yourself and your capabilities. Sometimes our own self-doubt may prevent us from achieving our goals. Don’t let working full time be an excuse to set aside your academic goals. The BAS program’s online environment makes completing the degree easier to manage while working full time, and you have hands-on support from the instructors that really do care about your future and success.
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