Reflecting on My MBA Journey at Seattle University
After just over two years of evening classes while working full time, I just graduated from Seattle University's Albers School of Business and Economics with my MBA. When something has been such a constant part of your life for that long, it takes a minute to process when it's finally over. Now that I have some space to breathe, I wanted to put some thoughts down while the experience is still fresh.
About three years ago, I started thinking about the next steps in my career. I had recently onboarded into my product management role and was settling into what felt like a stable place to grow. After bouncing around earlier in my career, that stability was a relief, and it gave me the mental space to ask bigger questions about where I wanted to go. I kept coming back to the same thought: what would help me keep advancing, not just in the next year or two, but over the long haul?
As a career changer who landed in product management unexpectedly, I was still figuring the field out. I had earned a Product certificate from the Pragmatic Institute, which established foundational PM knowledge and gave me more confidence in my day-to-day work, but I wanted something with more lasting impact, something that would pay dividends for years. I had also discovered that I loved product work. It clicked in a way previous roles hadn't, and I knew I wanted to stay in the field long-term. At the same time, I didn't have the traditional background many PMs have, and I never wanted that to become a ceiling. Whether fair or not, credentials matter, and I wasn't going to limit myself.
When I researched what successful PMs tend to have in their backgrounds, most came from either engineering or business. Both paths made sense to me. I've always been drawn to the technical side, so part of me leaned toward engineering. In the end, an MBA felt more valuable for my goals: a well-rounded understanding of the entire business landscape I work within every day. Product management sits at the intersection of so many functions, and depth in areas like finance, marketing, operations, and strategy seemed like it would make me better at the job itself.
Seattle University's Albers School of Business stood out quickly. The program had a strong reputation, the curriculum looked solid, and it was within walking distance of my home. Cost was a major factor too. Compared to other Seattle-area programs it was significantly more affordable, which made the decision easier. After a few months of deliberation, I applied in early 2023 and was accepted to start that fall. It felt like the right move, even though I wasn't entirely sure what I was getting myself into.
Going in, I didn't know what to expect. I had heard mixed things about MBA programs: some people call them transformative, others say they're mostly networking. My goal was straightforward, develop a much better understanding of how businesses operate and use that knowledge to inform how I approach product development. Even if the program wasn't perfect, that foundation would make me a more effective PM and open up options down the road.
After two years and one quarter of year-round classes, I graduated. Looking back, I'm glad I started when I did. The evening program fit into my life in a way that was sustainable, and I kept working full time while attending two classes per week most quarters. It wasn't always easy, and there were stretches where I was burned out juggling both. The structure made it manageable, and having a clear end date helped me push through the tougher quarters.
Overall, I was satisfied with the education. The curriculum was split into an Analytical Core and a Behavioral Core. The analytical side covered accounting, finance, economics, and statistics, and gave me a much stronger foundation in the numbers side of business than I had before. The behavioral side focused on management, ethics, and leadership, and that's where I found the most personal value. My favorite classes were the management and leadership ones. A class on emotional intelligence stands out as particularly impactful. It changed how I think about working with people and managing relationships, and I still draw on concepts from it regularly.
On the downside, some courses felt like filler. Limited availability each quarter meant I sometimes took classes just to keep progressing toward graduation. I tried to approach every class with an open mind though, and found something valuable in each one. Sometimes the unexpected classes taught me things I didn't know I needed to learn.
The cohort experience was mixed. Early on I had a solid group I went through the core classes with, and those relationships were valuable. As the program went on, people moved at different paces and the cohort dispersed. I would have liked more consistency there, because the deeper relationships made the experience richer. One thing I really appreciated was the large group of international students. Hearing how people from different countries and business cultures approached the same problems broadened how I think.
As for how the MBA has changed my work, the biggest shift is that I now consider the broader business landscape with every decision I make. I think more about how each choice ripples out across the organization. For the past few years, I've been building Local Public from the ground up at Cascade PBS, essentially running a startup within a larger organization, and as the sole PM I've touched nearly every aspect of the business: product strategy, go-to-market, operations, stakeholder management, financials, and more. That broad foundation helped me take on challenges I wouldn't have felt confident tackling before. I'm not an expert in every area, but I understand enough to ask the right questions and make more informed decisions.
Now that I'm finished, I'm excited to get back to self-directed learning. One unexpected benefit of the program was discovering books on business, management, and leadership I never would have found on my own, along with podcasts and other resources that have become regular parts of how I keep developing. The program gave me a framework for thinking about my own growth, and dramatically increased my curiosity about business as a whole.
Next, I'm filling in gaps the MBA didn't cover. I'm taking the Google Data Analytics Certificate on Coursera to build a stronger foundation in working with data, and I've started learning Python and general software development principles. I enjoy the technical aspects of my job and working closely with developers, and I want to deepen that knowledge so I can have better conversations and make better decisions. It feels like the natural next step.
Would I recommend an MBA? It depends on your situation. It's a significant investment of time and money, and it's not the right move for everyone. But if you want a broad, foundational understanding of how business works across multiple functions, I'm not sure there's a better way to get it. For me, it was worth it.
To anyone considering a similar path: figure out what you want from the experience, find a program that fits your life and budget, and commit to getting the most out of every class, even the ones that don't seem immediately relevant. It's been a meaningful investment in my career, and I'm grateful I made it when I did.