Katherine Hart found the perfect pivot point in the online program
“I don’t know what other [platforms] there are, but I’m sure I made a show for them” in a 10-year reality TV career, said Katherine Hart.
Yes, she had made a career of producing “unscripted” reality TV. Yet here she was, 10 years later, facing a plot twist that she certainly did not see coming.
The woman behind shows for Food Network, HGTV, Travel Channel, Discovery, Hulu, Netflix, Peacock—”I don’t know what other ones there are, but I’m sure I made a show for them”—was ready to give it up.
“I was so proud of being a TV producer, being able to show my work to my friends and family through a television screen, that I was crushed” to leave it behind, said Hart, who is now pursuing the Online MBA at the Daniels College of Business. But “the industry was shifting very rapidly and I wasn’t sure I wanted to be part of the new construction of it.
“So that’s where the idea of going to business school started: How do I broaden my skill set and reposition myself in the job market?”
To this point, Hart had been laser focused on the entertainment industry. She earned a degree in television, radio and film from Syracuse University’s prestigious communications school and moved to Los Angeles. She loved the hustle of freelance gigs.
But she didn’t like the look of looming job displacement or the prospect of long-term projects in less desirable locations.
When the COVID-19 pandemic shut things down, Hart packed up. She moved to Denver, a city with a big tech scene and abundant opportunities in renewable energy and construction.
She eventually moved into a project management job. It suited her surprisingly well, but she couldn’t help but feel out of her element.
“Those that have worked in any corporate setting seem to understand the same things. They just have an understanding of that lingo,” she said. “I feel like I came from a different planet.
“That’s why I went back for the MBA. Let’s learn more about what’s happening. Let’s keep exploring.”
The Perfect Program
The Online MBA was Hart’s first choice. It was broad, flexible, easy to customize, cutting edge. She could take classes from anywhere—including on the campus she found so beautiful. And it felt like everyone she encountered had some connection to the University of Denver.
“There was a bit of a gravitational pull,” she said. “I liked the energy. I liked that it was focused on getting you ready for a job market.”
In the classroom, Hart said she has been drawn to the cohort experience. Other students are professional, mature and bring a wide range of experiences to class discussions. It’s a safe space, where Hart feels she can ask even the simplest of questions.
Her first classes spanned economics, ethics, marketing and accounting—the comprehensive courseload she had been looking for. It’s made possible by an accommodating course schedule that allows students to take most classes either in person or online, a perfect fit with a job that sometimes requires travel. And she’s been impressed by the hands-on nature of the program, which features opportunities to complete projects in tandem with real companies.
“You can understand something at a conceptual level and a lecture, but if you’re not applying it among your peers in a group setting, then you don’t have applicable experience when you go into the job market,” Hart said. “So I’m slowly bridging myself into ‘Yes, I know how to do x, y and z because I have this experience, this project and this outcome.’”
Hart’s new dream job lies somewhere in the consulting sphere, closer to finance and revenue generation, perhaps in sales or business development.
In the meantime, she’s busy getting involved with student organizations like the graduate Women in Business group, the Consulting Club and the Sales Club.
She launched a podcast too. Former Reality is a series of informational interviews for people in creative careers, who are finding their place in a new environment.
Her mission is to change the way listeners think about jobs, work-life balance and their overall future.
“You can absolutely keep your valuable production skills and still be recognized and valued in entirely new and rewarding fields,” Hart says on the podcast’s website.
It helps to hear it from a host who is leading by example.