After Glenn Heller II received his bachelor’s degree in 2016, he hit the ground running. While working a full-time job in Hartford as a portfolio manager, he began night classes at the University of Connecticut, earning an MBA in 2021, with concentrations in finance and real estate, and a graduate certificate in genetics in 2022.
“The certificate wasn’t through UConn’s business school, but its medical school,” he said. “I was the only one studying genetics on a business track.”
The genetics certificate was, he said, “an appetizer.” Now he’s moved on to the entrée, having enrolled in Fairfield Dolan’s Executive DBA program.
When the time came to work toward his doctorate, “I figured, I only have one go at this,” Heller said, noting that he is “the only one in my family to graduate from college. My parents never got that opportunity but they knew the value of education, so they pushed me…that bachelor’s degree was as much for them as it was for me.”
Heller was cautiously optimistic about enrolling in Fairfield’s Executive DBA program.
“At first it was scary, taking that risk,” he said. “But the faculty gives you support — not just your faculty advisor, but all faculty members.”
“It was great to have meet-and-greets with them; that’s how I found my advisor, Dr. [William] Vasquez- Mazariegos. It was like speed dating,” Heller quipped. Entering his second year in the Executive DBA program, the insurance professional continues his remarkable juggling act of keeping up with classes while holding down a high-level job; in his office at work, he keeps five computer monitors going at once.
Fairfield has helped Heller keep his perspective. “More and more people in the business world have master’s degrees, so you want to stand out any way you can,” he said. “An MBA from Fairfield Dolan is impressive, of course, but a Dolan School DBA really stands out. When I tell people about it, they pay attention.”
Heller, who last year was a recipient of Fairfield Dolan’s inaugural 30 Under 30 award, described the six students in his Executive DBA program cohort as “extremely close.”
“I’m the youngest in the program by far,” he said.
“Most of the others are seasoned professionals with wellestablished careers, managing and leading teams.”
Heller said he would “highly recommend” Fairfield’s Executive DBA program. “I now see it as the best decision I ever made; it gives me the flexibility to pursue what I really want to pursue.”
Having finalized his dissertation topic on gene therapies and their impact on the insurance industry, Heller hopes to complete his doctoral studies by 2026.
