Learning the Language of Business

“I didn’t apply anywhere else but UofL, because UofL is home,” shared Jared Williams (he/him), when asked why he chose the University of Louisville to pursue his Online MBA. Once the decision was made to pursue his graduate degree, the Louisville native and Metrology Engineer for GE Appliances explained that with a full-time job and his son actively involved in multiple sports programs, he needed a flexible, asynchronous MBA program. “For me, it’s all about flexibility,” he said. “Some of my evenings won’t even start until 9 p.m. and will go on until 1 or 2 a.m…I couldn’t do that with a traditional program.”

While Williams previously earned undergraduate degrees in both architecture and integrated strategic communications at the University of Kentucky, the Fall 2021 Online MBA Vice-President recognized the need to elevate himself academically, noting that, “the world of business is almost its own language.” It was his desire to better learn that language, along with a need to support the ambitious goal of his young son Yahmir to become a “billionaire businessman” someday that solidified his decision to pursue his MBA.

The experiences gained through the MBA program have been transformative for Williams, in particular the friendship forged with one fellow OMBA cohort member during his international trip as part of the MBA program. “Luck of the draw put a gentleman by the name of Steve Cayton and I together, and we’ve kind of been inseparable ever since. Our children are about the same age [and] they play with each other.”

Reflecting on how earning his MBA will aid him after graduation, Williams shared that his program is already opening doors to new possibilities. “I feel like there are countless opportunities that are presented to me every day by proxy of [my] being within the program. I couldn’t have dreamed of some of this…on my own. My hard work could have gotten me…an experience I would have been happy with, but now…I have the network, I have the knowledge, I have the skill set to thrive.”

Williams encourages all individuals who might be weighing the decision to move forward with their MBA online to do so. “The faculty, they really care. The faculty is diverse. The student population is the same thing. If you reach out to different students…I think you’ll find that just because you’re online doesn’t mean that you have to go it alone.”