UBalt MBA opens doors for Nigerian native’s dream
What's My Why?
“I want to do something where I cause a change. I don't just want to fit into what everybody's doing—'Oh, everybody's working in corporate,’ or whatever—but I want to be able to make an impact that lasts even after I’m gone.”
It took time for Inam Oki to find her way to The University of Baltimore. She first had to find a college in a location she liked and with a program she wanted. Then she had to overcome time-consuming processing issues common for international students.
But when she finally got to her first day of classes, she knew it had been worth it. And now, on the brink of her final year in the MBA program, the feeling still rings true.
“I will promote UBalt to anybody, anytime, any day,” she said. … “It's a really good school. I like the way they teach, and the inclusiveness, for me, is top notch.”
Inam had spent some time weighing options for where she would pursue a master’s degree. She had completed her undergraduate degree in 2017 in international law and diplomacy, and was ready for something different, somewhere different.
Her father went to college in Chicago, so her eye was directed to the United States. But she had already visited that city, plus Minnesota, Virginia and New York. When a friend suggested Maryland, the idea stuck.
Inam started researching her options online and UBalt was a top result. She started her application at 11:30 p.m. Nigerian time.
There's a slogan at UBalt: Knowledge That Works. Classes are not just paper, pen and textbook. They're also teaching you based on what is happening in the marketplace.
Inam was initially looking at a cybersecurity program, but hit a snag when she couldn’t get her certificate of eligibility issued for that particular master’s degree. Determined, Inam attended an Office of Admission event and found help from Michelle Walters-Johnson, whom Inam still occasionally visits on campus.
That’s when Inam learned that the master’s program hadn’t yet been approved for international students, causing the issue, but there were other options, like an MBA with a cybersecurity specialization.
“So, I switched, which honestly, was a great blessing to me,” Inam said. “Years ago, I remember an uncle of mine trying to get me to get an MBA and I said no. I was like, it is not for me, I don't think I can do it, and I ran away from it. So, when this opportunity came back, I was like, God, I see what you're doing.”
It turned out to be even more fortuitous. Once Inam started classes, she realized her heart wasn’t really into cybersecurity at all. She easily switched specializations to focus instead on leadership and management development, and has been loving her courses ever since.
“I'm not just in school for the sake of like getting another degree, but I'm actually enjoying what I'm studying right now,” Inam said. … “There's a slogan at UBalt: Knowledge That Works. Classes are not just paper, pen and textbook. They're also teaching you based on what is happening in the marketplace.”
Working as a graduate assistant in the business school’s advising center has also given Inam a chance to put to practice what she’s learning in class, while also soaking in more lessons from observing the advisers there.
“Being able to interact with other students has opened me up to the possibilities that I have here. Everything that I'm learning in class, I get to actually apply it in my daily life at work as well,” she said. “Because most of my classes are managing people, leading with integrity, all of those things, they are very much applicable here. So, I look at it as I'm not just learning something where I'm like, OK, I'm putting it in the archives, when I finally got a job then I will start to apply these things.”
It's not lost on Inam that other students, particularly international ones, don’t have that opportunity in college.
“I honestly see it as such a privilege that I get to learn and apply it at the same time,” she said. … “I am constantly in a phase of learning every day and it's absolutely amazing.”
She’s learned a lot of the opportunities and resources she’s found at UBalt aren’t shared by friends that chose other institutions. From the personal emails from Michelle Walters-Johnson that encouraged her through the admission process, to conversations with her career coach, La-Toya Gomez, and adviser, Matt Mazick, that helped her find and navigate her specialization options, Inam has found help wherever she has sought it.
She’s likely to pay it forward in her future career.
While Inam prefers to keep her options open until she graduates—she wants to let every lesson and experience she has until then to matter—she is considering a career in human resources or consulting. Mostly, she said, she wants to advocate for others.
“I want to do something where I cause a change,” she said. “I don't just want to fit into what everybody's doing—'Oh, everybody's working in corporate,’ or whatever—but I want to be able to make an impact that lasts even after I’m gone.”