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Balancing a professional career while continuing the academic journey is always a challenge that requires commitment and perseverance. Pasha Rozenberg tells us about how his career as a professional Olympic diver helped him maintain discipline and apply the same perseverance from the sports arena to his academic pursuits in the Online Global MBA program.
For a high-performance athlete, it is crucial to structure life optimally around sport. Continuing education is another fundamental aspect that should never be neglected. In my opinion, high-performance sport should always go hand in hand with studies and education. Athletes need to prepare in advance for their retirement from sport and their integration into professional life. It is, however, quite challenging to combine high-performance sport with traditional studies that require daily presence at university. The MBA at SSBM Geneva offers a program where athletes can study flexibly, at their own pace. For me, this flexibility is exactly what makes the MBA at SSBM Geneva so strong.
The first three qualities that come to mind are discipline, perseverance, and vision. In both sport and business, achieving goals consistently requires going beyond the minimum—doing an extra repetition, running an extra mile, or working another hour, not only when it’s easy, but also when it’s difficult or when you would rather do something else. To be able to do that, you need a long-term vision. Vision serves as the fuel for both the body and the mind.
I consider myself fortunate to have started my MBA during a sabbatical year. The program is very rich, and I can hardly imagine managing the same workload while fully employed, as I did during the last two months. The highlight for me has been the diversity of topics. Some were very challenging, and I am glad I could dedicate many hours to deeply understanding the concepts. Each subject is different, yet they enrich one another. At first, this was a little overwhelming, but over time, it became one of the most rewarding aspects of the program.
While pursuing my MBA, I was also completing my master’s degree in High-Performance Sport, which included final exams. I greatly appreciated the flexibility to plan my MBA studies in the way that made the most sense for me. This flexibility was crucial. There were weeks when I studied more than 40 hours, and other weeks when I allowed myself a spontaneous break if I felt I needed it.
Yes. Even during a sabbatical year, the MBA required a lot of discipline from me, but it was worth it. Beyond the interesting and useful topics that will serve my future career and open new opportunities, I also gained more confidence in my ability to dive deeply into very different content, to find solutions for final projects, and to master tools that I will continue using throughout my professional journey.
Mr. Rozenberg’s journey sows how SSBM Geneva’s flexible MBA program empowers high-performing professionals to pursue academic excellence without compromising their careers. By combining practical learning with adaptable scheduling, the program equips students with the skills, confidence, and vision needed to succeed both now and in the future.