Dr. Orinthia Fisher-Howe is the Senior Administrative Assistant in the Department of Mathematics. Recently she earned her Doctorate in Business Administration. She reflects on her journey and the lessons learnt.

Through hard work you can accomplish anything.

When I was in the middle of reading for my Masters’ degree in Business Administration years ago, few, if any, could have convinced me that I would have pursued my education any further. Attaining an MBA had been a long-time dream of mine and given the hard work it required, I felt that I would be quite happy just finishing the programme.

Undertaking my MBA was however such a transformational experience that by the time I finished, I had not only developed an enduring love for learning, but also a passion to help others optimize their full potential, through education. This new-found passion was not altogether unexpected, given that I come from a family with a strong tradition of education and educating.

My goal of transitioning continued with my reading for a Doctorate in Business Administration where I majored in Strategic Management. Like many before me, the journey to obtaining my DBA had its challenges - few things worth having in life are without challenges. Perhaps the biggest of these was balancing the competing demands of work and school, something I’m sure many can identify with. Then there were the times when the academic workload seemed so great that the idea of taking the easy way out and giving up loomed large.

Having persevered and completed the journey, looking back I can truly say that it was an experience from which much was learnt. In addition to complex theories of organizations, people and managing, I learnt that tenacity and hard work do pay off; that learning is a highly rewarding and continuous process, and that sometimes we are really much stronger than we think. Importantly, I also learnt that no man is an island, as I doubt I would have been successful in my last academic endeavour without the unwavering encouragement and support of my family, friends and colleagues.

As I stand on the threshold of a new chapter in my life and career, my advice is to others is not original, but nonetheless profoundly sincere: always follow your dreams - you never know just where they may take you.