Laura Aguiar wears many hats at the Gainesville Regional Airport, and they’re fitting better thanks to her University of Florida master of business administration degree.
A key benefit came when Aguiar participated in a Gainesville economic development trip to Washington, D.C., and nearby areas in May 2014.
“We met with venture capitalists, and I felt comfortable discussing topics that were over my head before,” said Aguiar, who is the airport’s manager of public relations and governmental affairs.
Her MBA training continues to help Aguiar as she attempts to attract businesses to land the airport now has available next to its new entrance road.
“It helped me prepare for new responsibilities on behalf of the airport and the entire community,” she said.
Aguiar graduated from the UF Executive MBA Program, a program designed so working professionals with more than eight years of job experience can continue working while pursuing an MBA. The program attracts business leaders from around the state, who gather in Gainesville one weekend a month for classes.
“I was studying with CEOs, doctors and other professionals,” she said. “We learned so much from each other.”
Aguiar and her classmates continue to help each other out.
“One of them, who works for FEMA, contacted me about how to charter a helicopter,” she said.
Aguiar regards the Warrington College of Business Administration faculty as top notch.
She credits Dr. Amir Erez, a Huber Hurst professor in the Department of Management, with helping her learn about negotiating and managing teams in his organizational behavior class.
“He taught me a lot about motivating groups and observing behavior,” she said.
Doug Waldo, an associate professor of economics, often uses YouTube videos to teach his lessons.
“He has a knack for making learning quirky and fun,” Aguiar said.
J.R. Anchors, who’s halfway through the 20-month program, is getting an immediate return on investment by applying what he’s learning.
“I’ve gotten help from three faculty members on projects I’m working on,” said Anchors, who is assistant vice president of geriatric services at North Florida Regional Medical Center.
Anchors considered executive MBA programs at three other universities before choosing the UF program.
“I chose UF mostly because of the caliber of the students, have 14 to 15 years of experience in their careers,” Anchors said.
Chip Overstreet, North Florida’s assistant vice president of orthopedic services, is Anchors’ classmate.
“We’re able to work on projects together at a higher level than we were before,” Anchors said.
Joel Houston, the John B. Hall chair of the Department of Finance, Insurance and Real Estate, has helped Anchors on work-related projects.
Houston, who wrote a finance textbook used at UF and MBA programs throughout the country, works to make his classes relevant in light of the professional experience of his executive MBA students.
“I help them learn how to ask the right questions about projects they’re working on,” he said. “They’re in a position in which they have people working for them who can provide the details.”
Financial analysis involves more than numbers, Houston emphasized.
“There’s a lot of ambiguity in making financial decisions,” he said. “Things aren’t cut and dry. Real-work circumstances have a big impact. There’s a lot of art in finance.”
Seeing students help one another is satisfying for Houston.
“There’s magic in seeing that happen,” he said.
Kelly Throener, 32, was working for a local credit union when she enrolled in the UF MBA professional two-year program.
Although she had done well at the credit union, rising from a teller to an executive position, she wanted to become more competitive in order to advance her career.
Completing her MBA in 2013 paid off. Early in 2014, she became the chief financial officer of Citizens State Bank, which was founded in Perry in 1958 and moved its operations center to Gainesville in 2012.
“The MBA gave me more credibility,” Throener said.
Studying with her classmates, who each offered a different perspective, was rewarding, she added.
“We had 50 different examples that they brought to discussions,” she said. “People from different industries had different angles.”
Although juggling the demands of her job with school and raising her 8-year-old son was challenging, Throener found an immediate payoff after each weekend of classes.
“I took what I learned to the workplace the following Monday,” she said. “I was able to utilize the information because it directly applied to my job.”
Professional MBAs Grow in Popularity
In the 1990s, the University of Florida began offering MBA programs designed for students wishing to pursue an MBA alongside their full-time professional careers.
UF offers six different MBA options for working professionals, including online, executive and professional programs. Enrollment in these programs has tripled
since 2003, with annual enrollment now over 800 students.
“Our Executive and Professional students are successful, driven individuals who come to our program to learn, develop and challenge themselves at every opportunity, “ said Alex Sevilla, assistant dean and director of the MBA Program for the Warrington College of Business Administration.
“The level of camaraderie in these programs is incredible, which enables graduates to earn not only an MBA but also to create a powerful and lasting network of accomplished professionals from throughout the state and the region,” Sevilla said.
The programs have received considerable recognition nationally and internationally.
The Princeton Review recognized the UF MBA as the best-administered program in the nation for the past two years.
The Financial Times recently ranked the UF Online MBA program as No. 4 in the world. In this ranking, UF’s online program earned the No. 1 overall ranking the categories of salary increase and aims achieved, based upon a survey of alumni.
The Economist has recognized the UF Executive MBA program No. 14 in the world and No. 4 among U.S. programs. The Economist has also ranked the UF Online MBA as the world’s top rated program twice.
“It is particularly rewarding when rankings are generated, in part, from feedback from our students and alumni,” Sevilla said.