At Towson University Continuing & Professional Studies, our students’ success is our success. That’s why we work closely with them from registration through course completion to understand their career and continuing education needs and goals. Read on for Lara Nicolson’s success story and and get inspired to create your own student success story.
Tell us a little about your background.
I studied organizational psychology in South Africa and worked as an HR generalist for a big multinational for two years and I specialized in training and development for another year.
Then I relocated to Europe and worked in both Benefits and HR IS, before going back into training for Toyota.
When I moved to the US in 2005, I took a five-year break to focus on my family. I went back to work in non-profit project and event management for seven years. After my job was restructured, I decided to pursue a career in HR again. However, I found that I was limited without a US qualification or experience.
Why did you decide to take the Human Resources certification prep course?
After attending a seminar at my local workforce development office and learning about the Maryland Department of Labor’s WIOA program, I met with Trudy Munroe, the student success and program manager at Towson University, who recommended I take the Human Resources Certification Prep Course through Towson University Continuing & Professional Studies and take the exam.
Fortunately, I found a job as an HR generalist the same week as starting the class! But I know I would not have been as effective in my role had I not completed the class or taken the exam. I learned so much from Professor Hendy and the other students’ experience in the field. It brought the PHR exam content to life!
Did you take your certification exam yet? Did you pass?
I did pass the exam but would have never succeeded as a mature student to stay motivated, remain disciplined and get through all the content without Professor Hendy’s guidance, support and exam tips! I really recommend this class to everyone who plans to take the exam.
Here’s a video that features Professor Hendy and one of our career counselors talking about our Human Resources Certification Prep Course.
