Business Administration - Accounting
Graduate, 2013
“George Brown opened the door to the real world for me. Without it, I would not have gained the experience I now have.”
George Brown started Melly Guan on an educational pathway that just keeps going. After completing the College’s three-year Business Administration - Accounting program, she then moved on to Ryerson University’s Bachelor of Commerce degree, and after she finishes, in Spring 2017, she is contemplating doing a master’s degree focused on tax at the University of Waterloo. Or she may also go and find a job in her field.
Guan says she chose George Brown for its location in the heart of the city, which she sees as offering more job opportunities. She also likes the fast pace of the city. “Studying in the city provides exposure to new cultural, experience, business, technology, and people,” says Guan. “It allows me to learn things outside of books.” But clearly she proved successful in the book realm too, winning both the Governor General’s Academic Medal and the Dean’s Award for the Centre for Business.
After starting the program though, she realized that her favourite part of the program were her professors. Now that she’s in university, she says she appreciates the interactivity of her college days even more. “George Brown has smaller classes. In a big class of 100 students, you don’t get same interaction—at George Brown, you can raise hand and talk to teacher. I really like a smaller classroom,” says Guan. “And the campus is smaller too, so you don’t have to run all over.”
After graduating from George Brown, Guan worked at CIBC as a teller, and then at RBC Capital Markets in the global banking department. Guan then decided to pursue her degree at Ryerson after she was able to use her George Brown credits to gain direct entry into the third year of the university’s Business Management – Accounting program. Beyond providing academic credits, Guan says the College prepared her for other aspects of her employment and now university studies, by teaching her everything from software programs like Microsoft Excel and how to work effectively in teams. Extracurricular time spent employed at George Brown’s tutoring and learning centre also helped her realize an interest in teaching.
Wherever she moves, Guan says she’s happy she started where she did. “George Brown opened the door to the real world for me. Without it, I would not have gained the experience I now have.”
