Busy Lives, Fulfilling Dreams

[dropcap sid=”dropcap-1446831698″ type=”2″]F[/dropcap]or Lavinia Preda, a mother of two who works as a translator with the Romanian consulate in New York City, life was certainly busy enough. But then, in January 2013, she decided to take on even more: to pursue an evening MBA in accounting at Baruch’s Zicklin School of Business.

“I had done a lot of research into various programs offered at the elite schools in New York,” explains Preda (MBA ’16). “Program quality and flexibility were both vital, as were strong career development support, professional mentors, and networking opportunities.” Baruch’s Zicklin School fit her criteria perfectly. At Zicklin, Preda also nurtured her inner leader, becoming president of the Zicklin Women in Business club in January 2015 after holding other executive roles. Over the summer, she also undertook a full-time internship in external audit at Deloitte.

Of her full schedule, Preda says, “No one day is like another, but that’s the way I like it. I always end up doing or prioritizing a lot of things that I hadn’t planned.”

[pullquote sid=”pullquote-1446828521″ type=”2″ align=”right”]“Many promising business leaders don’t have the option of pursuing a degree full time,” explains Fenwick Huss, Zicklin’s Willem Kooyker Dean. “The evening program allows them to keep up with their busy lives while still working toward their dreams.”[/pullquote]The Evening MBA program offers classes year-round, so most students can complete their degree in three to four years. “Many promising business leaders don’t have the option of pursuing a degree full time,” explains Fenwick Huss, Zicklin’s Willem Kooyker Dean. “The evening program allows them to keep up with their busy lives while still working toward their dreams.”

Like Preda, Allen Schaefer (MBA ’14) found himself fully immersed in the business school culture despite working full time—as an auditor in New York City’s Department of Finance—and going to school part time. “I liked my job, and I didn’t want to take on any debt to get ahead,” Schaefer recalls. “I did a simple discounted cash flow analysis to determine ROI, and Baruch was the easy winner.”

For 30 months, his days began at 7:30 am and ended at 10 pm and included work, classes, the Real Estate Club, the Seminars and Conference Committee, and the Financial Statement Analysis and Securities Valuation Association, of which he served as president. In 2014 Schaefer received the Frances and Edward Murphy MBA Award for outstanding academic achievement and leadership at Zicklin. At work he was also promoted to the role of group chief within a year of graduation and is currently studying for the CPA exams.

Marilyn Calister, an MBA alumna of the class of 1990 and a founding member and managing director at Andersen Tax LLC, also recounts three years’ worth of days while earning her MBA that began at 6 am and ended at 11 pm. “I had financial obligations, including a mortgage, so part time was the only way. I worked full time for one company and did the books and records for three small companies to make extra money,” she says. “Because I was venturing into a second career, I did not have any time to waste.”

Having made that career change so successfully, Calister has this to say to those considering an MBA: “A master’s program in accounting must live up to the standard of excellence in the industry, and Baruch’s Evening MBA program does that and more.”

—Cheryl de Jong-Lambert