With a mission to inform, empower, celebrate and advocate for British Columbia's current and aspiring business leaders, BCBusiness go behind the headlines and bring readers face to face with the key issues and people driving business in B.C.
Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/1494678
46 BCBUSINESS.CA MARCH/APRIL 2023 A ndrey Soroka earned a finance degree in his native Ukraine, but he's no big- city banker. He found work in Toronto's glass towers when he first arrived in Canada—he cleaned their garages and windows. That was more than 10 years ago. Today, he also holds a civil engineering technology diploma, manages large highway projects near Fort St. John, where he lives, and is finishing his MBA from UNBC in Prince George. Soroka loves Northern B.C. "It's a bit cheaper living out here, so you're not spending life in traf- fic," he points out. "You can drive out for half an hour and be in nature." Soroka wanted more skills to be able to take bigger roles leading larger projects. He explored online MBAs from schools in Ontario, but remote learning didn't grab him. "I wanted to be more connected to the program and have that face-to-face component," he explains. Once a month, Soroka drives five hours to Prince George for three days of classes. He'll grad- uate this May. Unfortunately, that means he won't get to enjoy the shorter drive to Grande Prairie, Alberta, where UNBC is starting a new MBA loca- tion in September. The university also offers the degree at Langara College's campus in Vancouver. Kafui Monu is the curriculum chair of the UNBC School of Business. He says students at the different campuses have different needs. Prince George draws what he calls up-and-comers, striv- ing for their first management jobs. Grande Prai- rie attracts senior executives. And Vancouver mainly pulls in international students. Monu says that each campus will soon offer intimate, localized experiences, thanks to rela- tionships the university has built with its neigh- bours. UNBC worked with economic development officials and industry players when opening its new locations. "We made inroads with the com- munity and business leaders in those areas," he explains. That network will share ideas with students in business development classes, and collaborate with them after they graduate. EDUCATION GUIDE 2 0 2 3 University of Northern British Columbia " I wanted to be more connected to the program and have that face-to- face component " –Andrey Soroka TO A GREATER DEGREE An online MBA was Andrey Soroka's ticket to landing bigger roles and larger projects