One of the most significant milestones in my life, second only to my family, was achieving my Doctor of Education in Leadership, Entrepreneurship, and Innovation degree from the School of Leadership at City University of Seattle.
Earning this doctorate was driven by personal fulfillment and a passion for continuous learning. While this achievement has enriched my understanding and provided immense satisfaction, I recognize that it may impact my hiring status in the current job market. I undertook this educational journey for personal growth and enrichment rather than as a strategic career move. I’m confident that my newly acquired knowledge will enhance my contributions in my next position.
I began my journey toward this degree in July 2016 while working full-time as an instructional designer at First Data. Gradually, I progressed by completing a few classes at a time, tackling various subjects within the program curriculum. Some of the topics I covered included:
- Leadership Theory and Analysis
- Leading Organizational Change
- Social and Environmental Responsibility
- Cultural Competence for Diverse Audiences
- Ethical Organizational Leadership
- Strategic Thinking
- Developing Leaders of the Future
- Applied Managerial Economics
- New Venture Implementation
- Innovation Strategy
- Start-Up Plan Development
- Research Fundamentals
- Quantitative Research Methodologies
- Qualitative Research Methodologies
- Research Design
- Advanced Research Topics
Throughout this period, I managed to balance the demands of full-time employment, transitioning to a new job, caring for my family, coping with my father’s terminal illness and eventual passing, and facing the challenges posed by a global pandemic that required me to homeschool my two children for an entire school year. To say that earning this degree was a labor of love would be an immense understatement.
In December 2020, I successfully completed my comprehensive exam.
On March 17, 2023, I accomplished another significant milestone by successfully defending my dissertation “Work Pressure, Boundary Management, Burnout, and Toxic Work Environments for Remote Learning and Development Workers.” You can access the paper below.