Michael Cocquyt

Michael Cocquyt

"I would recommend to anyone interested not to wait. There will never be a perfect time and the longer you wait the more you waste your career potential."

Michael Cocquyt
Planner, LaBella Associates
Rochester, NY
Executive MBA, Class 2018

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Why did you choose the Executive MBA program?

I chose RIT because of their focus on inclusion of people of all abilities and backgrounds. I chose the EMBA because I wanted to be surrounded by people who were also working full time while attending school. The cohort model was very important to me.

How has your education helped your career?

Because of the leadership and mentoring abilities, I learned the team at my prior employment is now operating without me and I was able to successfully move forward to new career opportunities without any departure fallout. This program opened the door to change that I didn’t realize I needed.

What has been the biggest takeaway from your experience?

I found what I needed to do to progress my career.  I knew I wanted to move but didn’t know where.  The EMBA at RIT was the missing needle for my compass.

What is your best piece of advice?

Forget everything you think you are good or bad at before entering the program. The faculty are all phenomenal teachers who will find ways to pull talents out of you. I always thought I was bad at math, my two prior college degrees confirmed this. At RIT I found the tools I needed to embrace math and excelled in this prior area of weakness.

If you had to do it all over again, would you?

Yes, but I am thankful I did it when I did.  I would recommend to anyone interested not to wait.  There will never be a perfect time and the longer you wait the more you waste your career potential.

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