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“The way I look at it is, and this is
my personal philosophy, I have
no competition. My competition
is my dream.”
Her first university English grade wasn’t up to snuff, so
Peteva began writing day and night and proofreading
other people’s papers on the side to improve her
communications skills. While on the path to a doublemajor
in Political Science and Business Administration,
Peteva earned enough money to pay for an internship
with the United Nations in Geneva. Her work centered
on the difficult topic of female genital mutilation,
which helped further shape her world view.
By 23, when most students are just graduating college,
Peteva not only had her bachelor’s degree in hand
but had earned a master’s degree from Pepperdine.
She was already on the fast track to her career in the
entertainment industry.
The educator’s role
Peteva admits somewhat sheepishly that even now,
she’s never taken a day off. Believe it. “I have no year
unaccounted for, that I didn’t say, ‘You know what?
I was able to complete this milestone.’ And they are
not all the same. Some are personal. Some have to do
with citizenship. I love that. I think that’s why I have no
regrets … And that’s what I want for my students,” she
adds. “I want my students to look at everything they
want to do, and just do it—believe in their ability and
have no regrets.”
Teaching at University of Phoenix serves as the calm
in a relative storm of activity that marks her busy life.
It keeps her “balanced” and in many ways fulfilled.
“It’s such a rewarding feeling to feel like you have the
ability to make somebody see themselves as better; to
make somebody see themselves as valuable.”
Imagination to reality
Peteva’s University of Phoenix course includes
weekly wrap-ups that are sprinkled with inspirational
quotations. Her teaching methodology encompasses
real-world headlines transferred into business
applications. Supply-and-demand discussions touch
upon rising gas prices. Branding discussions reference
Hollywood mogul Tyler Perry. Profitability lectures cite
billionaire Warren Buffett. “Everybody wants to talk
about current events, but what I’m allowing them to
do is see them in a different light,” she says.
Each of Peteva’s students creates a business plan by
the end of class. That process begins with an inquiry
on broad-based entrepreneurial ideas that are limited
only by the imagination. By semester’s end the ideas
are transformed into presentations that could be,
and sometimes are, put forth to financial investors or
venture capitalists.
“All of a sudden you see this beautiful piece that’s also
accurate and business savvy from a person who might
have started out telling you, ‘I hate business classes,’”
she says. “It’s inspiring.”
ONLINE EXTRAS Visit FacultyMatters.com to see a
slideshow of images taken of Radostina Peteva at our April
photoshoot in California.
FACULTY
FACTS
RADOSTINA
pETEVA
Faculty since 2010
FACILITATES FOR
School of Business
HIGHEST DEGREE
Master’s in Business,
pepperdine University
Graziadio Graduate
School of Business
and Management
CAREER
HIGHLIGHTS
Daily I am able to
fuse my dreams or
the dreams of others
with my work.
BEST TEACHING
pRACTICES
Utilize the ABC
method/sandwich
approach for
feedback.
Use recent media
events to facilitate
lessons as it helps
students learn
quickly and memorize
contextually.
ADVICE
Motivate, believe
and inspire!