![\"Graduation](\"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Graduation-Cap_blue-500x500-e1586882554282.png\")
<\/a>GRADUATE PROGRAMS WEEK:<\/strong> Join us Nov. 5-10 for virtual and in-person events to learn about UToledo\u2019s graduate and professional programs. For more information, visit the\u00a0Graduate Programs Week webpage<\/a>.<\/p><\/div>\n And while Camden said she liked her post-graduation job, she also didn\u2019t find it fulfilling.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn’t picture it as something I would do my whole life,\u201d Camden said. \u201cI was also commuting an hour one-way for my job every day and working a lot of hours and weekends on top of my weekdays from 9 to 5. It became really draining and was starting to impact my social life and therefore overall well-being.\u201d<\/p>\n The pandemic only magnified her frustrations.<\/p>\n That\u2019s when Camden began to look for a new path, one that would take her in a new career direction \u2014 human resources. It’s what she enjoyed most from her experience working as an assistant manager who handled sales relationships with clients in the construction industry.<\/p>\n \u201cI enjoyed what I studied in undergrad and I still use those skills every day as well, but I didn’t really know exactly what I wanted to do someday until being in the workforce.\u201d<\/p>\n A friend who had just graduated with her M.B.A. at UToledo suggested Camden return to the University to pursue her M.B.A. as well.<\/p>\n \u201cShe told me great things about the program, and also introduced me to the option of being a graduate assistant,\u201d Camden said. \u201cI couldn’t get the idea of a tuition waiver and stipend while I worked towards a new specialization out of my mind, so I applied to the program and began connecting with faculty about available assistantships I could apply for.\u201d<\/p>\n Now in her third of four semesters of graduate school, Camden, 25, will graduate with her M.B.A. with a Human Resource Management focus in May 2023.<\/p>\n Now in her third of four semesters of graduate school, Crystal Camden, 25, will graduate with her M.B.A. with a Human Resource Management focus in May 2023.<\/p><\/div>\n \u201cI have already learned so much in the program,\u201d she said, \u201cand I feel much better equipped to go out and serve in higher-level, higher-paying roles in the future, and in an area that I’m happier in long term.\u201d<\/p>\n This course correction in her life is one of many challenges she\u2019s successfully navigated.<\/p>\n She grew up in the small town of Gibsonburg, with approximately 2,500 residents who share one stoplight. She lived in a modest home with her father, a truck driver with a physical disability, and kept busy in high school athletics, arts programs and theater.<\/p>\n Her reasons to attend UToledo were for proximity \u2014 \u201cIt was far enough away from my hometown that I felt like I was starting a new adventure, but close enough that I would be able to visit my family when I wanted to without a huge drive\u201d \u2014 and for a kind of magical feeling she got during her first campus visit during a winter\u2019s day.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was snow on the ground, and I thought it looked like Hogwarts,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was absolutely the most beautiful and welcoming campus I had been to.\u201d<\/p>\n Four years later, Camden become the first in her family to earn a bachelor’s degree.<\/p>\n As an undergrad, she was involved in multiple organizations, including RockeTHON, The Bridge, Pi Sigma Epsilon (PSE) professional sales and marketing fraternity, and served as the president of her social sorority, Alpha Chi Omega (AXO), for a short time.<\/p>\n Camdem, her boyfriend and their dog, Obi.<\/p><\/div>\n And as a graduate student, Camden has been busy as a graduate assistant in the Edward H. Schmidt School of Professional Sales, helping with coordinating various programs such as the UToledo Invitational Sales Competition in the John B. and Lillian E. Neff College of Business and Innovation, and providing data analysis and interpretation.<\/p>\n \u201cThis role lets me gain knowledge and expertise in so many different ways,\u201d she said, \u201cand it has made me a well-rounded individual. I’m sure I’ll use the skills I’ve picked up here for the rest of my life, like time management, creative problem solving, data interpretation and more.\u201d<\/p>\n Dr. Jenell Wittmer, associate professor of management, said she sees unlimited potential in Camden.<\/p>\n “Crystal is a bright and dynamic student and professional, always taking the initiative to grow in her leadership and expertise,\u201d Wittmer said. \u201cIt’s been my great privilege to work with her in my graduate courses and in the Neff COBI Advanced Leadership Academy. She is a kind and inclusive leader and I truly believe that the sky is the limit for her.”<\/p>\n With the resources and support of the business college, Camden said she\u2019s accepted a position with National Corporate Housing, where she is working as a part-time intern.<\/p>\n She\u2019s also focused on graduating and saving up to buy a home in Maumee with her boyfriend to share with their cat, Hyde, and dog, Obi.<\/p>\n For Camden, graduate school has been the best path forward.<\/p>\n \u201cGraduate school heavily builds on what you learned in undergrad, but you’re going to dive really deep into just a few topics as opposed to skimming just past the surface on a lot of topics like with your bachelor\u2019s,\u201d she said. \u201cGraduate school’s purpose, in my opinion, is to help you get a deep specialization in your chosen field.<\/p>\n \u201cUToledo has some of the best faculty and staff around, and you’re sure to learn a ton and get some great skillsets to take with you into your career.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Graduate school provided Crystal Camden an opportunity to dive into human resource management.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":878,"featured_media":76501,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[50,32,1,71,7],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76499"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/878"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76499"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76499\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":76522,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76499\/revisions\/76522"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76501"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76499"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76499"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76499"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/a><\/a><\/a>