Like many University of Phoenix alumni, Shammai Terry’s (MBA, 2020) academic path was not a linear one. She first enrolled in an associate degree program in criminal justice at age 23 as a single mother with a three-year-old daughter and one-year-old son. The online degree program provides students with a basic understanding of the criminal justice and corrections system and the procedures involved in criminal justice, preparing graduates for jobs as correctional officers or jailers. Her two-year associate degree prepared her to take new career steps, first working for a network security firm and then with a company that sold internet-based law-enforcement solutions like crime and predictive analytics.
Terry is now national sales director of a law enforcement solutions company. “I took a shot,” said Terry. “I found a way to kind of love law enforcement. I’ve met high-caliber police officers and federal agents.”
As her career got underway, Terry saw that she could leverage higher-level degrees to help push her aspirations even higher. Through University of Phoenix’s flexible online degree programs, she was able to complete two more degrees: a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in business administration.
Terry was able to transfer her associate degree program credits into the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree program. This program is designed to give students a foundation in business concepts, teaching key skills like communication, leadership, management and operations. The four-year online degree program allows students to customize their degree with a certificate in analytics, entrepreneurship and financial planning.
University of Phoenix programs are designed to equip students with the skill sets they need to thrive in their chosen industry. Students like Terry in the Business Administration degree program learn how to make decisions to help businesses solve problems, to advance organizational goals using business concepts and principles, to understand and leverage relationships among various facets of the organization and to analyze logistics in global operations.
MBA Options at University of Phoenix
The Master of Business Administration (MBA) at University of Phoenix takes many of these critical skills to the next level, preparing students for leadership roles in businesses and organizations. There are two online MBA options for students. The traditional MBA, accredited by the ASBSP, is a 16-month program for students who work best in a group setting and hold a bachelor’s degree but have never studied business. Eligible for transfer credits may be applied toward this MBA.
For a student with an existing bachelor’s degree in business or management who has worked at least three years in a corporate setting, there is also the competency-based education (CBE) MBA program. This one-year program, also ASBSP accredited, is geared toward independent learners and evaluates students’ real-world skills as opposed to relying on exams. To do this, it employs a theoretical framework to test competency around such tasks as creating competitive advantages and developing global strategies for a theoretical business.
Although every student’s experience is unique, Terry said that by improving her skills and credentials with additional degree programs at University of Phoenix, she was able to enhance her compensation. She’s planning to get her Doctor of Business Administration from University of Phoenix as her next big move.
Managing Life’s Curveballs with Career Services for Life®
During 2020, Terry had a health crisis that sent her to the hospital, and she now has to manage a series of issues including liver problems, high blood pressure and diabetes. She had to step away from her career to focus on regaining her health and has now reentered the job marketplace.
As she did so, she also turned to University of Phoenix’s Career Services for Life® commitment to active students and alumni to get support in crafting her resume and to learn how to best represent herself to potential employers and match with a high-level role. Terry worked with Ricklyn Woods, a University of Phoenix career advisor, who helped to best highlight Terry’s skills and experiences on her resume, LinkedIn profile and in interviews. “For many people, their career journey is anything but linear,” said Woods. “There are often highs, lows, ups and downs.”
Ultimately, Terry got her confidence back and successfully took on a new role. Woods said: “Once Shammai believed in herself again, others began to believe in her too.”
About University of Phoenix
University of Phoenix is committed to advancing the educational goals of adult and nontraditional learners. The University also strives to make it easy and affordable for individuals to complete an MBA program. University of Phoenix provides options that working adults need including numerous scholarship opportunities, flexible schedules, online learning and career-guided degree programs. What’s more, the University’s Career Services for Life® commitment to active students and alumni is designed to help them more effectively pursue career and personal aspirations while balancing their busy lives. For more information, visit www.phoenix.edu.
