Education:
MBA, Loyola College in Maryland
B.A., Loyola College in Maryland

Employment: Senior Policy Advocate, Jobs Opportunities Task Force

Spotlight
Melissa Broome’s MBA opened the door to new perspectives and a new job opportunity. Originally an account executive for a graphic design firm, Broome began working for a Baltimore non-profit agency and knew that a graduate degree was essential to staying competitive and advancing in the field.

She chose Loyola’s MBA program because she felt it went beyond the typical business offerings of other programs to include a broader perspective of how organizations impact their employees and their surrounding communities.

“I knew that Loyola would address the bigger picture,” she explains. “The non-profit world needs solid professionals who know how to tie in important issues such as responsible business practices and corporate social responsibility.”

Broome gained perspective from fellow students and found that regardless of whether she agreed with their approach, hearing the other points of view was invaluable to forming her own opinion of how business should be done.

During her studies, she won a prestigious Kolvenbach Award, which offers Loyola faculty and students funding for community-based research that involves real-life issues and challenges in Baltimore. Broome’s topic of low wage workers and the working poor in Baltimore quickly became her passion and her entrée into a new professional opportunity.

“I know that the Jobs Opportunities Task Force knew of the work I did for my Kolvenbach research,” she explains. “They actually contacted me about their opportunity, knowing that they wanted a Master’s who would understand the issues facing working families to fill their position.”

Broome knows first-hand the impact her Loyola education has had on her professional and personal life and encourages prospective students to investigate the program for themselves.

“Loyola’s environment has a more intimate feel. The classes are small and faculty and fellow students know who you are and where you work,” she says. “It’s very interactive which makes it easier to apply what you’re learning to every day life. Students help to shape the discussion.”