From the Centre
I am not a fan of the word “old,” but it fits the saying, Can you teach an old (insert noun here) new tricks?
I am a lifelong learner; I enjoy new challenging approaches to problem-solving and skill development. In 2020, stuck at home 24/7, I embarked on one of my most significant challenges yet, enrolling in an MBA program 30 years since my last formal university experience.
My career path has involved working independently in a variety of community settings. In the early ’90s, I travelled around southern Ontario as an Occupational Therapist working with clients in rural and remote communities on return-to-work plans. I carried a huge, cumbersome laptop and tried to connect to the internet wherever I could. I loved it. I continued to work from a home office and clinic office when my husband and I bought our first dental clinic. As the business manager, I could work from anywhere with internet access. I chose to operate a mobile campaign office for my run in 2018 for the city council. We organized everything via computer, shared documents and scheduling. We held meetings at local community businesses rather than rent a campaign office. These experiences added to my confidence in approaching a fully online MBA during a pandemic.
For me, the learning curve was adapting to the various virtual meeting formats new processes to review, research, and submit projects, papers, and homework. Despite my previous experience, I did have a few stumbles. The program I am enrolled in is designed for working professionals looking to take an accelerated, part-time MBA. I had to adapt to all of the new technology implement my own organizing process to keep track of the reading, assignments and projects. There were late arrivals to class due to technical difficulties late submissions due to missing the final step in a multistep submission process for online homework. The various embarrassing moments of either forgetting to unmute or not muting and having a classmate text me to let me know they could hear all the conversations going on in my home.
Getting past the technical challenges of online learning was one thing. Now I wondered how this virtual experience would compare to the only other university experience with direct, in-person instruction. I have been using Zoom and Teams for work and personal meetings since the beginning of 2020. These meetings involved many people with who I already had developed relationships. There was an easy banter and rhythm to those meetings. Would the relationships develop as quickly online? The answer for me was YES! The degree of success was related to the comfort level of each professor. No surprise but the leadership and marketing professors lead the most engaging classes. They required cameras on during the course and active participation from all students. Stories were shared freely by students who all brought professional experience to the table. These discussions enhanced the learning experience.
Group projects provided the opportunity to meet and learn new processes from a wide variety of fellow students. I have met and developed friendships with people from coast to coast in Canada. There were only three out-of-province spots held in my undergrad degree. I loved the exposure to various provincial processes and economic realities as part of our learning. The professors are also from a wide variety of institutions. I have had Canadian and American professors who have expertise in leadership, marketing and finance lending a global perspective to our education.
I will also admit that I enjoy the short, warm and safe commute to my home office from my kitchen to attend classes. Parking is cheaper too! I will never forget the long commute to the U of M Health Sciences campus for classes that ran from 8-4 p.m. daily. Standing at a bus stop in the dead of winter, hoping the bus would be on time and the connections would work out. Getting home and making dinner while I thaw out from the commute and then hitting the books. How much more studying could I be doing without that time spent on the commute? Four years of moving to and from the city every fall and every summer to return to my summer job and save money for the next school year added to the burden. How much money could I have saved if I had learned from home? Don’t get me wrong, there are definite benefits from in-person learning, socializing and relationship building. Some topics must be completed in person, especially if you are planning a career in the humanities.
I am about halfway through my MBA now, and I have discovered that I can continue my lifelong learning journey. The online environment has opened my eyes to endless possibilities. Yes, “old” students can learn new tricks.
I look forward to returning to in-person contact in many aspects of my personal and professional life, and I would love to attend in-person graduation at the end of this!
You can reach Nancy Cooke to comment on this article at [email protected].