DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.

During my few years at Tunxis working towards my Associates' Degree, I worked full time. I couldn't believe the amount of information I learned during each class that I was able to integrate into my current and former positions in management. Through my accounting classes (and earning my Accounting Certificate), Composition, law, ethics, economics, marketing and my current course, management, I've taken many of the skills attained and have experienced several "WOW" moments.

 

I started Tunxis simply working towards an Accounting Certificate. In doing so, I started with Federal Income Tax. During this time, I worked for an accounting firm as an administrative supervisor. Even though that came with mostly administrative and bookkeeping duties, there were many intricacies that I learned about tax returns and I quickly realized that when the Accountants were talking, I knew what they were saying! I was no longer smiling and nodding along to the conversations, I could actually take part in them. This led to a deeper responsibility in my supervisory duties as they added the accounting interns to my department, knowing that I could supervise them for the smaller returns. 

 

I took two Composition classes (I and II). They are near the top of the list as my favorites. I have always been a self-described writer, but as I acquired more skills in these classes, I became the "wordsmith" in my current and former positions. Co-workers would come to me to help them write an email to a client or format a letter. They would come to me to help with marketing campaigns and contract language. This is something I've always enjoyed and I love that I can put it to good use!

 

My marketing class was another favorite. Again, in both of my positions, I became the marketing "guru." I like to be creative both in my personal and professional life and was able to use the skills I learned in the New Shoes simulation and create some wonderful social media marketing campaigns. At my previous employer, I created a "50 Acts of Kindness" campaign. As a firm, we committed to 50 acts of kindness during 2016, whether they be buying someone coffee, volunteering at a marathon or taking care of a community garden for a week. The class also helped me to understand where to focus budgets within marketing as there are many different ways to market a company!

 

I suppose I have a lot of favorites, because my law class was an amazing experience. It contained a plethora of information from criminal law to employment law. The employment law was especially useful for me, as I had to research this subject one week after we had reviewed that chapter in the class! I used my textbook as a resource (along with Google, of course) and provided some solid knowledge to the managing partners in the meantime. 

 

Teamwork is a huge ability to learn and understand. Without it, you really can't do much in life. No matter what we do, we're always going to need to work with a team. I did this in my marketing class with the New Shoes simulation. I worked with 4 other classmates and we made weekly decisions. There was a lot of communication and collaboration; very important things in running a business as well as managing and supervising a team. A leader needs to be able to listen and understand everyone that they're working with. 

 

I am currently halfway through my Principles of Management class. There have been a lot of correlations between what we're studying and my current management position in my job. Recently, we read about applicants' resumes and the statistical data surrounding the falsification of information provided on those resumes. It was surprising to read that nearly 53% of applicants provided false information on their resumes! This was a key fact to learn because part of my job is to make sure that I'm checking the background of all of our applicants, educational and otherwise. 

 

There is much more integration between my studies and my career than what I have mentioned here. Almost daily, there is a moment where I can relate my studies to the real world, make a connection, and use what I've learned to make the best decision possible. I've been on the fence about whether I should move forward towards a Bachelor's Degree, but because I've learned so much and have been able to use what I've learned so often, I feel as though I've come much closer to making a decision towards pursuing that degree!

DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.