Human touch seals the deal for online student

Omar Mufti chose to complete his bachelor’s degree through CMU Innovation and Online after applying to more than 100 schools because the staff was punctual, thorough, responsive and flexible.

There was one more thing. A more important thing.

“I felt like there was a touch of care,” Mufti, who lives in the country of Jordan, said. CMU Online staff made him feel like he was a person to them and not just a financial transaction.

All of that, plus they offered him credits for previous work experience.

Mufti attended college in Canada and started working. He liked the job, he said, but it just didn’t quite satisfy his passion.

“A few years later, I felt like something was missing,” he said.

Mufti started pursuing an online degree in entrepreneurship to help him grow a fantasy sports app focused on professional soccer in Saudi Arabia. The app allows people to build teams and compete for prizes.

He expects to earn his bachelor’s degree next year, but his CMU experience is already helping him grow the app.

Coursework in management and leadership helped him when he needed to build out his staff. Entrepreneur courses helped him with his business model.

He already had experience with key business concepts, but the course helped him place those in a broader business context, he said. He redefined his business model and developed tactics to solve problems.

He launched his app recently and is currently in the process of attracting users. A marketing course is helping him figure out how to do that.

Studying at CMU opened other opportunities.

During a intensive writing course, Mufti – who recently became a father – wrote a children’s book. Based on feedback from his instructor, he said he plans to launch a career as an author in the future.

He’s also looking forward to visiting CMU’s main campus in Mount Pleasant when he graduates to see the school that welcomed him by opening up multiple career paths.