“I’m always encouraging people to go back to school. The competition that’s out here now is so fierce. The degree really makes a difference. It’s a determining factor for many jobs. For me, it was a personal accomplishment as well as a career-oriented accomplishment.”
Finding Her Calling
After graduating from Murrell Dobbins High School in the Germantown section of Philadelphia, Ursula Days entered the workforce as a call center operator for a health insurance agency. She enjoyed a successful career with the agency for more than 10 years, but decided she wanted to further her education.
“ The degree really makes a difference. ”
“I began to attend the Computer Learning Center, but after four or five months of me taking classes, the school closed,” said Ursula. “After that, I was a little discouraged in reference to going back to school because I feared that something like that would happen again.”
Around the same time, Urusla made a career move that brought her to the field of human resources and then eventually to the City of Philadelphia as a supervisor in the revenue department. As she balanced her busy life - she’s a single mother of two young sons - she started thinking about going back to school again.
“I found out about returning to school and the different things the city offered in conjunction with schools,” said Ursula. “I was always familiar with Peirce but going through the Open House gave me a broader perspective of what Peirce had to offer me.”
As she weighed her options, Ursula realized that Peirce’s reputation and the short commute from her Center City office -- as well as the tuition discount offered by the City of Philadelphia as a partner of Peirce -- made the school the right place for her to earn her degree. She began her journey as a Business Administration major but switched to a Human Resource Management major when Peirce introduced the program in 2011.
As she delved further into her education, she relied on the help of her professors and the guidance of her advisors and financial aid specialists to help her navigate the path to her bachelor’s degree.
“Each time a professor saw me struggling with something or they could tell that I didn’t understand something, they were willing and able to assist, even with the online classes,” Ursula recounted. “And when I asked a question [to her advisor or financial aid specialist] they were able to answer it in a timely fashion. I didn’t have to worry about having to call back for somebody to follow up with something. I appreciate all the teachers and staff at Peirce. I’ve had nothing but good [experiences].”
With her bachelor’s degree in hand, Ursula plans to advance her career and expand into the field of human resources.