Colorado Tech Online Students and Alumni

Meet Pamela Mann
BSBA with a concentration in Human Resource Management

A degree offers the opportunity of choices

For Pamela Mann, Colorado Technical University graduate, obtaining a university degree means having the opportunity to make choices in your career field and in the job market. The decision to return to college was ultimately made by the realization that Pamela had hit her glass ceiling in her current career. "It was about career limitation as opposed to opportunity. It was the resignation of a colleague, and a potential new opportunity" that made Pamela realize that "without a degree in business administration or social work, I would never be considered for the position." This is despite her 30 years of experience in the field. There was no further job advancement for Pamela.

CTU Alumni: Pamela Mann[With a university degree] you have the potential to do something awesome, if you keep a positive, can-do attitude you will succeed. At age 50, if I can do this…so can you!

With the desire to open up more career opportunities, Pamela began noticing advertisements for earning a college degree online and she began to look more seriously at continuing her education. One day while online, she saw an ad for Colorado Tech Online, made a phone call and spoke with an Admissions Advisor, and within a week Pamela was enrolled in college.

"Everyone I spoke with at Colorado Tech Online was so responsive and enthusiastic to my needs, and they did everything they could to make things run smoothly and quickly. I did have contact with another online university and they were more hesitant and took longer to respond to my needs. Colorado Tech Online was very responsive and encouraging with a 'you can get this done' style of motivation."

The flexibility and convenience of online learning was a great fit for Pamela as she lives in a very rural community, approximately 275 miles west of Omaha, Nebraska, and she would have to travel 150 miles each way to attend the closest bricks and mortar university. With working full-time, the travel time alone would be extremely difficult and inconvenient.

While Pamela currently works in the social work field, she would eventually like to have the opportunity to move into business management in the private sector. With her BSBA degree with a concentration in Human Resource Management, and 30 years of business experience, Pamela believes she would be able to move up the ladder quickly. Since obtaining her BSBA degree from Colorado Tech Online, Pamela has been hired as an administrator with Health and Human Services for the State of Nebraska. But, her sights are set even further than that. Her goal since she was 10 years old was to teach others and she has had many professional opportunities to be a trainer. Motivating and providing employees with the skills to better do their jobs are something Pamela would enjoy doing.

Pamela has easily applied what she learned in her courses at Colorado Tech Online to her current job. While working on a major cultural change initiative in her organization, Pamela was able to apply human resource and organizational techniques and processes to the situation. "I utilized milestones to meet each change initiative during the process, I also was able to take training theories and apply them by presenting change information to employees -- this included introducing the change and getting buy-in and participation from the employees."

Another inspiration that led Pamela to earn her degree was the desire to make a difference in the lives of people with disabilities from a leadership role. Her colleagues have inspired her to move on and up to make changes in policies. "As an administrator I have the chance to effect change in a statewide system."

Doors that were previously closed when employers found out she did not have a degree are now wide open. Pamela learned that experience alone doesn't always get you in the door. Experience coupled with a college degree offers many more opportunities. With a university degree "you have the potential to do something awesome, if you keep a positive, can-do attitude you will succeed. At age 50, if I can do this…so can you!"

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