Alumna celebrates landmark birthday with scholarship

With an important birthday looming, Serena Myles, ‘16 BCom, ‘22 MBA, found herself reflecting on her life goals — particularly in the realm of philanthropy. 

She’d been donating to the U of A since earning her undergraduate degree but had yet to realize her long-time goal of creating a scholarship. 

“I’ve always wanted to help students who were like me and had to pay for their education,” she says.

Paying for her education is a point of pride for Myles, but the experience was difficult — especially as a part-time graduate student ineligible for many scholarships. Earning a scholarship specifically for part-time MBA students eased some of the financial stress for Myles: “I felt so lucky and so fortunate.”

Although Myles only earned her MBA a year ago and is still paying off student debt, she decided to start her own scholarship to help business students. “I thought, ‘There’s so many students that are just like me who could really benefit from this funding now.’ ” 

Thus, the Serena Myles Graduate Scholarship in Business was born just a few weeks shy of her 30th birthday. To be eligible, students must have a GPA of at least 3.3 and be a part time MBA student. The first recipient will be chosen in the Winter 2024 term.

Myles now works as a development officer in the U of A Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry (her interest in philanthropy is professional, too) but began her career at Ford of Canada while still a BCom student. After attending a Network of Empowered Women (NEW) conference — an event organized by undergraduate business students — she’d snagged an internship with the company, which was sponsoring that year’s event, and was hired as a business analyst upon graduation. Over the next few years, Myles moved up the ranks to provide marketing consultation to a dozen BC dealerships.

Myles says the Alberta School of Business helped her grow from a shy, quiet student into a confident businesswoman. The dean at the time, Joseph Doucet, encouraged students to have a well-rounded academic experience, inspiring her to attend conferences like NEW, get involved with extracurriculars like the JDC West business competition, and travel abroad (Myles went to Italy through the Faculty of Arts School in Cortona program). 

“The Alberta School of Business set me up for success,” she says. “I wouldn't be where I am without them.” 

Myles believes in giving back early in life and was a donor before creating the $1000 annual scholarship, but says her biggest gift has yet to come. After losing a couple of family members this spring, she decided to prioritize her own estate planning and completed her will, leaving a bequest to the Alberta School of Business. 

Myles’ birthday became a self-imposed deadline not only for setting up the scholarship but for finishing her bequest, as well. 

“I thought, ‘Starting at 30, I can make an impact today for people just like me and also know that when the time comes, I can leave something to the Alberta School of Business,’ ” she says. 

“I just have such a high affinity for the Alberta School of Business and could never show enough gratitude for how they shaped who I am.”