California Lecturer Hopes to Help His Students at AUA “In Every Way I Can” To  Find Their Desired Jobs in Armenia After They Graduate

4 min read

YEREVAN, Armenia – As soon as she completed her MBA at the American University of Armenia (AUA) in June 2015, Lady Luck shone on Mariam Grigoryan; she was hired by Triada Studio, as a marketing and public relations specialist. Triada Studio is a Yerevan-based creative production and post-production company, best known for Shadowmatic, an imagination-stirring puzzle that won the Apple Design Award in 2015.

Grigoryan does not see her landing a job with Triada as a stroke of luck, though. She credits AUA and her professors at the College of Business and Economics (CBE) for helping pave the way for her success. “AUA helped by providing many qualified professors, which is at the core of the university’s mission,” Grigoryan said. Since its inception in 1991, the University has developed a well-deserved reputation for hiring high-quality, easily accessible faculty who are supportive of students and alumni during their years at AUA, and beyond.

“The professors impacted my decision-making, career advancement, and the vision I have now. They really help the students recognize their potential and guide them in choosing the right major and an optimal path to reach their goals. As CBE Visiting Lecturer Haig Messerlian once told me, ‘a teacher’s job extends beyond the walls of the classroom.’ He was concerned with the progress of his students even after graduation,” Grigoryan said. Messerlian, a semi-retired advertising agency senior VP, creative director, living in California, regularly travels to Armenia from the US to teach at AUA.

It was Messerlian who recommended Grigoryan to Ara Aghamyan, CEO at Triada Studio. “He wrote an email telling Mr. Aghamyan that I am a great match for Triada Studio and that he won’t regret hiring me,” Grigoryan said.

“As a teacher, I am always concerned with the progress of my students even after graduation, by helping them in every way I can,” Messerlian confirmed. “For me an important part of my responsibility is to extend my mentorship, even after they graduate, so that they can get the jobs they love and deserve, and stay in Armenia.” 

Messerlian, who describes Grigoryan as “an exceptional student and an active and attentive participant in his class,” is proud of her post-AUA successes. “All I did was to make the introduction and write a letter of recommendation. Grigoryan is the only person who should be credited for getting the job that she loved. She got it because she’s smart, pro-active, and deserving. She obviously impressed Triada’s management with her personality, her style of presentation, and the knowledge that she earned at AUA,” Messerlian said.

Grigoryan is the perfect example of the actualization of AUA’s core mission, according to AUA President Armen Der Kiureghian. “Grigoryan’s story is exactly what we want—a story where an AUA graduate has found a desired job in Armenia with the support and encouragement of AUA and its faculty,” Der Kiureghian said.

Messerlian, who says that he is a proud AUA faculty member and feels inspired and motivated by the University’s leadership and staff, as well as his colleagues and students, maintains close ties with his students—new and old—through email and meetings. According to him, he regularly sends to them relevant articles, videos, news, and updates about the advertising industry, as well as other interesting and educational materials, resources, and references, including information about scholarships and grants, internships, potential jobs, and more.

Messerlian also welcomes office visits from his former and current students while he is in Armenia; some students even visit him in California. Also, when he is due to teach at AUA, he arrives in Armenia at least two to three weeks before the start of his classes to meet with each new student, get to know them, and to provide detailed information about the courses he will be teaching. “We start out as strangers and, after the meeting, we become friends. And on the first day of class, we already know each other,” Messerlian said, adding that he asks his new students to fill out a questionnaire in order to better understand their personalities, needs, and aspirations, as well as societal trends that are impacting them. He makes adjustments to himself and his classes, accordingly.

“The contacts I have with my current and former students are mutually beneficial. Their communications and successes energize, inspire, and motivate me to better serve them,” Messerlian, who since 2008 has taught a total of 213 students in his Advertising Management class at AUA, said. “I do my best to encourage and help them, because, for me, not only it’s part of my work, but also I am very much aware that helping the new generation in Armenia means helping Armenia and AUA. My students at AUA are intelligent, smart, and eager to learn. They deserve the best. Each one represents the bright future of Armenia. Each one is a potential entrepreneur, innovator, and leader. Together, as alumni of the AUA, they are a formidable asset to Armenia and AUA.”

Messerlian sees his efforts at supporting Armenia and its citizens, and AUA and its students bearing fruit. “Just like Grigoryan, I am convinced that most, if not all AUA graduates prefer to stay, live, and work in Armenia. All they need is a job that they like which will make a decent life possible for them—nothing more. A diploma from AUA gives them the clout they need to achieve that goal and stay in Armenia,” Messerlian said.

Stepping out of the relative security that AUA provided her through two years of her studies and transitioning into the real world was a nerve-wracking experience for Grigoryan. However, with a solid AUA education on her palette, Grigoryan, whose studies led her to enter the rapidly-growing IT field, felt confident. “The American University of Armenia helps its students develop in a way that allows us to aim for the most desirable and high-end jobs in the country. I am fully aware of why I entered this university and that I got what I wanted. Like most students here, I take pride in belonging to such an institution,” Grigoryan added. “AUA keeps investing in Armenia’s youth and never loses faith and hope of a better Armenia.”

Indeed, AUA’s birth contrasted sharply with Armenia’s grim days of war, the aftereffects of the 1988 earthquake, and economic downturn in the country, following independence in the early 90’s. Yet, AUA’s faith in Armenia’s future has contributed to the University’s and the nation’s growth. Today, AUA helps fuel Armenia’s goal of becoming among the top 20 IT leaders in the world by 2018, through its high-quality IT-related academic programs, both at the undergraduate and graduate levels. AUA will also launch its Innovation and Technology Incubation Center (ITIC) in 2018, to develop further crucial collaboration between Armenia’s IT industry and academia.

Founded in 1991, the American University of Armenia (AUA) is a private, independent university located in Yerevan, Armenia and affiliated with the University of California. AUA provides a US-style education in Armenia and the region, offering high-quality, graduate and undergraduate studies, encouraging civic engagement, and promoting public service and democratic values.

AUA alumna Mariam Grigoryan (third from left) with colleagues at Triada Studio.