Armiti Rashidi, Program Coordinator for the Marilyn Davies College of Business and current MBA student at UHD, did not originally start her journey in the business world.
Before immigrating to the United States in 2012, Rashidi was born and raised in Iran, where she studied agricultural engineering at a highly accredited Iranian university. Unfortunately, her home country did not offer many job opportunities for women. Many interviews left her rejected as they often chose to hire a man over a woman, or because she was not Muslim, asking several prying and uncomfortable questions about her religious beliefs.
Frustrated with the discrimination and lack of opportunity, she applied for US citizenship, a process that took four long years. During this time, she occasionally felt discouraged. “Sometimes I told myself I’m going to give up,” she said. Despite her struggles, she knew there was no room for growth without pursuing a more promising future in the US.
Persistence paid off, and Rashidi eventually made it to the US, where she would graduate from the University of Houston with a bachelor's degree in finance. She chose to pursue a business degree, and eventually an MBA, after realizing that a degree in agricultural engineering did not offer many career opportunities in the States.
However, it was far from a waste of time. Thanks to the degree she earned while studying in Iran, she was able to earn her bachelor’s in only two years.
She also worked for YMCA International Services Center where she helped many first-generation and newly immigrated students and professionals like herself. Here she discovered her passion for helping people and was recommended by a fellow professional at the YMCA for a position at UHD in 2018. Seeing students move forward, finding their path, and reaching new milestones is what keeps her motivated.
As a Program Coordinator, Rashidi helps UHD students with advising, selecting courses, applying for scholarship programs, and finding career or internship opportunities, and she’s been able to use skills gained through her MBA to manage cross-functional projects and use data to enhance UHD's practical processes.
Rashidi is aiming to graduate with her MBA in Project Management and Process Improvement in the fall of 2025. After graduation, she plans to continue learning and growing as a Program Coordinator and connecting students with the resources they need to succeed.