Mario de la Hoz Martinez was an asset manager for an oil and gas company located in Peru. Understanding that a master’s degree was the best way to improve knowledge and move up in business, Mario began looking for an online program he could take from his residence in Peru.
When Juan Carlos Alvarez, an American National University representative, visited Mario’s local church, he spoke to Mario about ANU’s Master of Business Administration (MBA) program and the requirements. The affordability of ANU met Mario’s needs and made him confident that ANU was the right fit for him.
Mario, like some, had no prior experience of online-education and was hesitant at first. “Before [my] ANU experience, I preferred face-to-face teaching,” said Mario. “That experience broke down a lot of walls in my life – changed my paradigm… It was to be in touch with a new style of education.”
One of Mario’s favorite aspects of the online education was the varied perspectives he was able to hear from other students, whether that be in culture, beliefs, or professions. “I was able to learn a lot of things and to see the situation with a different perspective, not just an engineer perspective, but a medical perspective, a finance perspective, a technology perspective,” said Mario. “Perhaps it’s good to [put together] people with others with different skills.”
Upon earning his MBA, Mario has become a senior asset manager, where he is responsible for finance, safety, and technical aspects of the company. Mario admits that his education played an important role in him landing a promotion. “[At meetings] we have to discuss about financial statements, we have to discuss how to manage people – the human factor,” said Mario. “The MBA provides you a lot of tools to understand… [and] to make a better decision.”
Mario hopes to climb the ranks and oversee larger assets to grow in his experiences, eventually moving to North America to be closer to his children.
