Erin Wilson doesn鈥檛 shy away from a challenging situation.
As a child, she endured multiple moves that would have her enrolled in 11 different grade schools. Later, she would again face life-changing events that nearly derailed her goals to finish her undergraduate degree.
Every time, she persevered.
鈥淵ou have to find it within yourself to pursue an education. It takes a lot, it鈥檚 a sacrifice,鈥� Wilson said. 鈥淪ometimes we don鈥檛 believe in ourselves the way we should, because of things that we went through.鈥�
Wilson decided to take on another challenge鈥攅arning an MBA from The University of 极乐禁地e. She affirms the mindset that "life is simply about growth."
While she鈥檚 currently moving through her first semester in the program, even this journey had an unexpected delay. Her personal life interruptions that affected her undergraduate GPA barred her initial admission. Rather than quit, she pivoted.
UBalt offered her admission into the , which gives career-changers, adult learners and passionate students a foundation for a business career and, if they want, a gateway to a master鈥檚 degree.
Wilson willingly accepted and her experience was better than she anticipated.
鈥淕oing into it, I thought, it鈥檚 going to be so hard trying to balance life and work and everything. It wasn鈥檛 a breeze, it was challenging, 鈥� but I was still able to do it,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t was the flexibility, and they are constantly in communication with you.鈥�
She took advantage of program and University resources including office hours, supplemental learning tools and online class options.
Wilson graduated with the certificate in December 2023 and started the MBA program in spring 2024. She plans to specialize in finance.
Even through the certificate program, Wilson was learning skills she could apply to her work as a divisional budget officer. A final project for her management class, for example, involved creating a process map meant to identify areas for improvement for a hypothetical company.
鈥淢y mind works like that all the time,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f I need to explain something to executive leadership, I鈥檓 always ready to say this is how it is now, and this is how it could be. And if I need to put it in a visual, I can easily do that, and feel good about it.鈥�
She also benefited from learning about the aspects of a business that can intersect with her work. Marketing doesn鈥檛 directly relate to her current position, but her course work had her mind spinning with possibilities for collaboration.
Wilson is looking on having an even stronger understanding of business functions and how they interrelate after she finishes the MBA program. She knows it鈥檒l serve her well in the future if she can become a chief financial officer or even a chief executive officer, her dream job.
鈥淚 just wanted to broaden my opportunities and I feel like I would do that with the MBA.鈥�