“If you say I can’t do something, I’m going to do the opposite.”
Karli Barich
Executive MBA Online, Class of 2020
Executive Director, Foreign Language for Youth
Karli Barich was raised in a University of Washington home. Her Husky parents even sang UW’s fight song to her as a baby. But when it came time to earn her Executive Master of Business Administration degree, it was Washington State University that provided the information, assistance, flexibility, and credentialed faculty she was looking for in an online business program.“
WSU’s recruitment person contacted me every week by phone, just to check in and help me with the application process. I loved that personal touch and I wanted to be part of that community.”
Making the Best Decision for Her Future.
Even though choosing WSU was difficult for her diehard UW family to accept, Karli knew it was the right choice for her. But Karli had been making difficult decisions and standing up for herself for years. Earlier in her career, working for the family business, she found herself in a difficult position.
She was working as a legal secretary with a paralegal degree during a time the business was going through an intellectual property lawsuit and considering a merger. A mentor at the law firm encouraged her to use her legal knowledge to help her family navigate both issues.
“I did a ton of work, and I was so proud of it. I felt like a rockstar. And when the company was sold to the Canadian buyer, I was enlisted in general administration, basically an office manager, of the company instead of being pegged as someone who had played such a strategic role.”