Zoe Martin-Doike started playing the violin when she was five. After years of intensive musical training and education, the Philadelphia resident earned her dream job as a tenured violist for The Metropolitan Opera orchestra. When the pandemic halted performances and musicians were furloughed, Zoe decided to pursue a longtime interest in personal finance and enroll in Western Governors University’s College of Business bachelor of science in business administration, accounting degree program. 

Through WGU, she found an internship with Campaign for Working Families, which offers free tax preparation for people with fewer resources. She also helps her fellow musician friends with their often-complicated income tax preparations. She says WGU’s competency-based model allows her to study on her own time and has opened her mind to so many other possibilities outside of music.