Margaret Ryder

Why I chose Piedmont for my MBA.

I chose Piedmont for a variety of reasons.  First and foremost, Piedmont College has had an excellent reputation for academic achievement in the Southeast for several decades. I grew up in Gainesville, Ga., and several of my high school friends went to Piedmont for their undergraduate degrees in business, pre-med, and nursing. I am still in contact with Dr. Brad Sundstrom, who is a dentist in Georgia and works with several Piedmont graduates in my career as a transactional attorney.

Driving home from work one day, I heard on the radio that Piedmont was listed as one of the best private college in the Southeast. I already knew that the School of Business was dedicated to teaching “real-world” applications to its students. Business theory has its place, but critically thinking through real problems managers and executives face is the key to success. Its student-teacher/professor ratios were less than 25 students per class on average.  You can really appreciate that after sitting in a class of 300 for Econ 101 at UGA. For the record, my number was #227.

When I started teaching business law, there appeared to be a gap between the business and legal worlds.  Business people and bankers often called lawyers “deal killers” because it’s the lawyer that tells the business what it cannot do. Lawyers believed that business people didn’t have the knowledge or skill to incorporate advance legal concepts into their day-to-day dealings. In a effort to break through this barrier, I thought I could serve both my students and myself by acquiring an MBA.

Plus, Piedmont works with me to make sure I can receive the best possible education and still keep working and taking care of my family.  The evening classes work well with my crazy schedule as a working mother with two children at home. I have the option of two campuses and both day and evening classes.

Finally, Piedmont’s dedication to its students is unusual in today’s world.  Though both my undergraduate and legal educations were sound, neither really took interest in me as a person trying to develop and grow in my chosen field. Piedmont’s size and organization allows them to make a greater impact on their students’ academic careers.