Article by Nick DeMent | Owl Staff
Malik Tyler, a 2016 Mass Communications graduate of Harford Community College, has been quite busy since the day he walked that venerated stage and received his degree.
Since then, Malik has joined the Air Force, completed a bachelor’s, started a career in real estate, and published his first book, The Emancipation Subjugation, a summation of his professional life and personal philosophy on how one can achieve their goals in life.
Malik began his HCC journey back in 2014, and he, like many new students, was not entirely sure what subject he wanted for his major. He experimented with a few different degree paths before he ended up deciding on a Mass Communications track.
“My first major was paralegal studies, then it was political science, and then I ended up choosing Mass Communications. Mass Communications was my best college experience for me, due to the fact I was able to express my creativity through my schoolwork,” he says.
After graduating in 2016, Malik joined the United States Air Force. At 20 years old, he was married with a young family of two children, and felt the military was the best option for his family’s future. While serving, he was able to complete his bachelor’s degree.
Malik feels his experiences at HCC helped prepare him for these challenges:
“My experience in college gave me a mental advantage over my peers. In college, I learned how to manage my time, study different topics, and became administratively proficient. These management skills made it easier for me to transition into a leader as a Staff Sergeant, and I was able to complete my bachelor’s degree within a short amount of time,” he says.
He has served for six years, and 2023 will be the end of his contract, after which he hopes to use his education and cultivate his recent foray into the real estate industry.
When asked why he chose the real estate world as his next target as a career destination, he says, “I got into real estate after I bought my first home. The agent who sold me my home Carlos Todd ended up becoming my mentor and guided me through the process of becoming a real estate agent. I didn’t plan for it to happen it’s just one of those things that was meant to happen.”
Malik believes his time with HCC, combined with his military experience, has more than prepared him for a future in such a competitive business, as both institutions have helped shape his work ethic and overall philosophy in his approach toward life and its challenges. This philosophy serves as the inspiration for Malik’s book, where he talks about his experiences, his life, his future, and how he hopes this can help other young people achieve their goals as well.
In addition to being a college graduate, a veteran, and real estate agent, Malik plans on writing more books and becoming a successful author as well:
“My goal is to release at least one book a year so that everyone can witness how powerful the mind is. I feel like I improve and become wiser each year that I’m on Earth, which only means that my books will become more powerful and sophisticated.”
Malik has not forgotten his roots as an HCC alum, where he believes he received some of his most formative experiences that continue to shape his future.
As he says, “HCC will always be a part of me.”