2008 Woodie Awards
Studying Psychology Helps With Winery
A former student shares news of his new Napa Valley business.
Karina Mc Cabe
Issue date: 4/29/05 Section: Life & Times
As the torture of finals descend upon us, many students are beginning to wonder why they are even taking these classes to begin with. How can one even begin to apply a liberal arts degree to the real world? Well, how about taking a major in psychology and then using this degree to succeed in opening a wine business in Napa Valley, California? Sounds unrelated, but alumnus, Robert Piziali, '95, did exactly this.
After realizing late in his college career that psychology was not a field he wished to venture into, Piziali began to worry about how much effort he had put into his college career that would now all go to waste. However, he does not regret his decision to pursue this major, because he believes that the skills learned while acquiring this degree combined perfectly with his venture capital major at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and rewarded him with an advantage in business entrepreneurship.
That's right; a psychology degree can provide an advantage in opening a business in a completely unrelated field. In a recent interview with The Sandspur, Piziali explains, unlike "people who major in business in undergrad, those with a liberal arts background compliment" an MBA degree in business by "kind of rounding off the education." He claims this because, "if you're well-read, articulate, and have other strengths, then you're more well-rounded than someone who just majored in business."
Indeed, Piziali's background helped him to overcome the downturn of the dot-com era, and subsequent drop in jobs available to graduates, as those who are able to communicate well, a skill taught at liberal arts institutions such as Rollins, will always have careers available to them.
Regardless of the drop in employment, many of his fellow graduates did manage to secure positions with huge paychecks. Piziali, on the other hand, focused on entrepreneurship during his studies at UNC and combined this knowledge, his communication skills from Rollins, and his passion for wine to pursue a career that he believed he would really love because, he says, "if I pick something I love, then I'd have a better shot at it."
After realizing late in his college career that psychology was not a field he wished to venture into, Piziali began to worry about how much effort he had put into his college career that would now all go to waste. However, he does not regret his decision to pursue this major, because he believes that the skills learned while acquiring this degree combined perfectly with his venture capital major at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and rewarded him with an advantage in business entrepreneurship.
That's right; a psychology degree can provide an advantage in opening a business in a completely unrelated field. In a recent interview with The Sandspur, Piziali explains, unlike "people who major in business in undergrad, those with a liberal arts background compliment" an MBA degree in business by "kind of rounding off the education." He claims this because, "if you're well-read, articulate, and have other strengths, then you're more well-rounded than someone who just majored in business."
Indeed, Piziali's background helped him to overcome the downturn of the dot-com era, and subsequent drop in jobs available to graduates, as those who are able to communicate well, a skill taught at liberal arts institutions such as Rollins, will always have careers available to them.
Regardless of the drop in employment, many of his fellow graduates did manage to secure positions with huge paychecks. Piziali, on the other hand, focused on entrepreneurship during his studies at UNC and combined this knowledge, his communication skills from Rollins, and his passion for wine to pursue a career that he believed he would really love because, he says, "if I pick something I love, then I'd have a better shot at it."