The story of a financial advisor backed by three decades, with no bachelor’s degree, who went looking for trouble
When prospective students at upGrad’s Singapore events ask Daniel Tan why he did the DBA, he tells them with a straight face that he was really bored and had nothing to do — and that he didn’t have enough stress in his life, so he decided to go looking for trouble.
He means it entirely.
Daniel has been a financial advisor for almost thirty years. He co-founded a business in 2012, grew it, and made a profitable exit in 2019. He trains organizations in emotional intelligence, adjunct lectures at Singapore universities, acts on local television, and recently started performing stand-up comedy. He does not have a bachelor’s degree. When he was in polytechnic, his father was retrenched. Being the only son, he felt it was his duty to get out and work. “I may not be able to feed my family right away — but at least I didn’t have to get pocket money from my parents anymore.” University never entered the picture. A diploma, then sales, then insurance, then everything else.
The study bug returned in his late forties, when institutions started accepting applicants with working experience in place of a degree. He took an MBA in 2018. During COVID, with appointments drying up and time suddenly available, he looked around for the next challenge and found the DBA at Golden Gate University.
He calls himself an outlier. Most of his cohort had clear professional goals — promotions, role changes, new trajectories. Daniel enrolled because it sounded like a challenge. He was under no illusions once inside. “I liken it to a marathon — a sure test of your perseverance and resilience.” He almost quit five times. What kept him going was the DBA GGU worldwide community: cohort-mates across Singapore, Vietnam, the UK, Hong Kong, and Thailand, pulling each other up through WhatsApp and live sessions.
The biggest shift was not what he expected. “The biggest change for me would be to learn to question why. Previously, I might have just accepted something — it is what it is, and that’s it. But I would now learn to ask, why does this happen? I learned to go several layers deeper and not just take things as they are.”
He does not know yet exactly where the doctorate will take him. He is honest about that in a way most graduates are not. “I don’t know where this will take me. It’s a continuum — it’s not a straight line.”
Dr. Daniel Tan completed the Doctor of Business Administration through Golden Gate University’s online DBA program — a fully accredited, fully online doctorate for working professionals. Applications are open.
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