Hear From Our Students...

"My name is Casey Wood and I am currently a District Business Manager for Pfizer Pharmaceuticals. I graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1987 and then served a little over 4 years in the US Army. I left to join Pfizer in October of 1991 and have been employed with them since then as first a Territory Representative, then and Institutional Sales Representative, followed by a stint as a Project Manager for Launch Products in my company’s New York City headquarters. I have been a District Business Manager since 1997 in Louisville, KY, Portland, OR, and currently in Spokane, WA. I have been married to my wife Brenda (an OR RN at Valley Hospital) since 1999.

I went back to Gonzaga to get my MBA in Healthcare Management for several compelling reasons. First, the opportunities for any kind of formal intellectual growth within my company are very limited. Pfizer is great, however, about paying for that formal education if you are willing to do it during non-work hours. I just felt compelled to take advantage of Pfizer’s great reimbursement policy to further my formal education. Secondly, I truly feel that in today’s fluid employment environment you have to be constantly working on furthering your professional education and job skills. It is more and more unlikely that people will work with any one company for their entire career. You have to be ready for the next opportunity to further your career, and continuing to enhance your formal education shows your desire, your initiative, and your professionalism to your current, and to possible future, employers. All of my experience outside of the military is in healthcare, and my wife and I have worked in healthcare for almost 20 years together. The MBA in Healthcare Management that Gonzaga offers made complete sense to me and was a perfect fit for my skills and experience. "

"I began my career as a neonatal nurse in 1997. I quickly developed not only my passion to provide care to patients, but also to learn more about how the health care field works from a business perspective. As I began to develop my leadership skills I found quickly the business perspective was even more essential. In 2005 I transitioned to a Nurse Manager at Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital. It was then I began to research my options for Master’s programs and quickly found Gonzaga’s program was the perfect fit. I had looked at many MBA programs throughout area, but none put a focus to Health Care Management. The MBA in Healthcare Management Gonzaga has offered has given me the opportunity take business principles and apply them to the world I work in every day. I have had an opportunity to not only learn theory, but also learn from some of the top health care leaders in our community.

I was also drawn to Gonzaga and their MBA program due to their understanding and willingness to work with each student individually to create a program that works for them. They truly want each student to be successful. I have never felt pressure to take on more courses than I can manage with my current work load and family needs. I continue to move through the program one class at a time and know that the ultimate goal of completing my program is just around the corner."

Tammy Powers
Nurse Manager
Sacred Heart Children's Hospital
Current Student

"My MBA experience at GU has been extremely valuable as it has sharpened my skill set from my previous career, opened my eyes to the critical pieces of business that I was not familiar with, and provided new business skills that will broaden my leadership and management abilities. After spending 16 years in the same career, I found that I developed a 'tunnel vision' in regards to my general business understanding. The MBA has provided an opportunity for me to explore, test, and practice other business practices that I have not been able to previously." Chud Wendle Residential and commercial Sales Associated Brokers, Inc. MBA Alumni 2009

"A major issue currently facing my profession relates to how an accounting firm manages the balance between clients' interests and the responsibilities an auditor has to the general public. My experience at Gonzaga has helped me develop a professional and ethical framework that protects the public's interests while still providing the greatest value to my firm's clients." Christian Ellis Auditor KPMG Seattle MAcc Alumni 2008

"Completing the Gonzaga MBA degree program is the single greatest accomplishment of my lifetime. There is no experience more satisfying than coming to Gonzaga, overcoming this great challenge, and leaving with the utmost sense of competence in the workplace. This degree has given me the confidence to set higher expectations for myself and the skill set to lead others to experience patterns of extraordinary success and achievement." Marshall Bratton Club Coach South Perth Baseball Club Perth, Western Australia MBA Alumni 2008

"Gonzaga's MBA program is the perfect match to my professional plan and will fully prepare me for my future career. The teachers are always on-hand whenever I have a problem. Through the courses I have completed at GU, I have built confidence in my abilities to be successful in the business world." Wei Huang MBA Alumni 2009

"Coming from a large state college, I have found the educational atmosphere at GU to be very condusive to learning. The small class sizes have allowed for significant discussions. My favorite aspect of GU has been the instructors; they have all been highly involved and always concerned about the student's comprehension and education." Ben Doornink Founder/Owner INDABA Coffee MBA/HCM Alumni 2009