Many professionals choose a Business Administration programme to further and broaden their professional development, increasing their impact within their organisation. UMIO’s Part-Time Programme in Business Administration bridges theory and practice, leading to new insights and knowledge that can be applied directly to everyday work. Pascal Minartz and Lisje Schellen, both experienced in their respective fields, found the programme at UMIO to be a valuable journey. For them, it not only deepened their existing knowledge but also provided an opportunity to view their roles and organisations from a broader, strategic perspective.
For Pascal, Deputy Director at Gilde Opleidingen, the Part-Time Programme in Business Administration was an opportunity to enhance his extensive experience with new insights and scientific frameworks. “I wanted to capitalise on my experience while gaining a deeper understanding of the scientific basis behind our work,” he explained. In the Business Administration programme, he found a course that was not only theoretically stimulating but also manageable alongside the demands of a busy career and active personal life. “The programme runs for a year,” Pascal shares. “This made it feasible to balance my work and personal life. It was a manageable time investment.”
Lisje, Director of Educational Services at the Open University, sought to deepen her management role. “I often made the right decisions based on intuition and experience, but I wanted more substantiation and strategic insight,” she says. For her, the programme offered a unique opportunity to satisfy her curiosity and approach her role from a broader perspective. Both Lisje and Pascal emphasise the value of working on practice-oriented cases throughout the course. Pascal remarks, “The beauty of it is that you are actively working on your own development, directly applicable to your work.” For Lisje, the programme brought not only subject-specific knowledge but also a new way of thinking: “It was only later that I fully realised how much of an impact it had on my work and my view of the organisation. The freedom of choice within the programme allows you to take exactly what you want from it.”
Becoming a better sparring partner for colleagues
During the programme, both Pascal and Lisje gained valuable insights and practical knowledge that were immediately applicable to their work. For Pascal, this helped deepen and structure his existing knowledge. “I gained all sorts of new insights and a framework to better underpin my work,” he says. “As a result, I am now a much better sparring partner for the financial specialists in our organisation. We understand each other better now.” Moreover, the programme enabled him to grow further in his role, for example, by translating complex issues into practical solutions more quickly.
Strengthening existing knowledge and experience
Lisje learned to view organisational structures and processes from a broader perspective. “The programme helped me think at a higher level of abstraction, especially regarding business control and change management. This allows me to make better strategic choices and build more effective teams,” she shares. Additionally, she was provided with practical tools and insights that she could apply directly to her work. “The practical cases and feedback from fellow students helped me find new solutions that I might not have considered otherwise.”
The programme not only provided new knowledge but also helped to strengthen and more effectively utilise insights from their experience. This balance between theoretical depth and practical applicability is what makes the programme uniquely valuable, according to Pascal and Lisje. “You notice that you start looking at things differently,” Lisje comments. “Suddenly, you see solutions that didn’t occur to you before.”
However, Pascal and Lisje agree that the ultimate strength of the Part-Time Business Administration Programme lies in the overall experience. “The environment is inspiring, the organisation of the programme is excellent, and it’s a broad course with high-quality content,” says Pascal. “If one of my colleagues were considering pursuing further education, I’d definitely recommend looking into UMIO’s offerings.”
