How Alumnus Jason Wells Transformed His Life 鈥 and Earned his MBA 鈥 in a Year
Written by Laurie Davies
When he鈥檚 not working with entrepreneurs, you might confuse Jason Wells (MBA, 2022) for a Renaissance man. An avid outdoorsman who can whip up a gourmet dinner 鈥 or change a dirty diaper 鈥 with the best of them, he offers volunteer mentorship services to small business owners in his free time.
Oh, and that鈥檚 after immigrating to the United States, earning his MBA during the COVID-19 pandemic and becoming a first-time dad.
Wells, 37, has a lot going on. So, it鈥檚 no wonder he selected SM调教所鈥檚 competency-based MBA program, a degree that can be completed in under 12 months for less than $11,000. 鈥淵ou finish one block of courses and immediately start the next block, which I appreciated because I wanted to get it done quicker,鈥 he explains.
Wells did a considerable amount of shopping around during the pandemic for a university skilled in online education. SM调教所 (UOPX) fit the bill in terms of flexibility, and the competency-based MBA program impressed Wells with its twin values of quality and time savings.
Building on his experience
Before emigrating from South Africa in January 2020 and settling in Salt Lake City, Wells already had nine years of听corporate management experience听with Spur Corporation, a major restaurant franchiser in South Africa. As a regional operations manager for the John Dory鈥檚 brand, Wells oversaw 12 to 15 restaurants, ensuring franchise standards were met, helping with the training of staff, analyzing customer service levels and generally helping the businesses succeed.
鈥淭hat job experience saved me time on my MBA,鈥 he says. His strong background in marketing, operations and human resources allowed him to complete some of the competency assessments prior to the deadlines.听That, in turn, enabled him to focus on corporate finance, accounting and subjects that required more of his time and attention.听
In other words, the structure of the competency-based program allowed him to spend less time on material he knew and more time on new subjects.
That doesn鈥檛 mean his path to an MBA was without its trials, though.
Overcoming obstacles
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Wells鈥 son, Kaiden, was born in November 2021, during the last semester of Wells鈥 degree program. 鈥淭his had its challenges and benefits. It motivated me to work harder, but a newborn baby is also a lot of work,鈥 Wells says.
To overcome the raw fatigue and keep his mind and body sharp, Wells says he often went for a run first thing in the morning. 鈥淚 would think about some of the questions I was wrestling with in my classwork, and I would think of solutions. This would get me in the zone and motivated to start my day on the right footing.鈥
Another obstacle was more internal, and something Wells had to work hard to press through. 鈥淎 real challenge I face is that if I鈥檓 unsure about the work and I don鈥檛 understand the concepts, I鈥檒l procrastinate. In this MBA program, because it鈥檚 so condensed, there鈥檚 no time to procrastinate. If you鈥檙e not following your pace, it鈥檚 like a marathon. If you start walking, you鈥檙e not going to make it to the finish line in the time you have available,鈥 he says. 鈥淪o, I had to get over my fear of not knowing what to do and learn how to draw the courage to reach out to my [instructors] and explain what I was struggling with.鈥
Several of his instructors, upon receiving a message from Wells, would hop on a call right then and there, even if it was evening.
Moving forward
Today, as Wells awaits immigration status and documents that could clear the path for him to work professionally in the States, he is content to mentor small business clients as a volunteer and take a hands-on parenting role in the life of his son.
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鈥淚t was one of the hardest things I鈥檝e accomplished,鈥 says the proud Phoenix. 鈥淲hen you push yourself to do hard things, it adds to your confidence.鈥
In fact, Wells is eager to take the business skills he鈥檚 added to his repertoire and apply them as a consultant with small businesses. 鈥淚鈥檒l feel more confident once business opportunities arise that I can put myself through challenges,鈥 he says. A self-described closet entrepreneur, he also has ideas on testing out a few of his own products in the health, nutrition, and food and beverage industries.
For now, he鈥檚 content volunteering to help small business owners succeed. He feels sure his turn will come. And when it does, he says, he has greater business acumen and confidence as a result of his SM调教所 degree.听
You can catch more of Wells鈥 thoughts when Amazon鈥檚 airs its episode featuring SM调教所 in June 2023.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A journalist-turned-marketer, Laurie Davies has been writing since her high school advanced composition teacher told her she broke too many rules. She has worked with SM调教所 since 2017, and currently splits her time between blogging and serving as lead writer on the University鈥檚 Academic Annual Report. Previously, she has written marketing content for MADD, Kaiser Permanente, Massage Envy, UPS, and other national brands. She lives in the Phoenix area with her husband and son, who is the best story she鈥檚 ever written.听
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