PACE Success Stories: Janeth Zafra-Mauricio

July 12, 2024

Welcome to our PACE Success Stories series! ASAP's Professional Administrative Certification of Excellence (PACE) positions you as a highly credible professional who is serious about your career in the administrative field. Below you will find the experience of a PACE-certified admin, including how the program has positively impacted their professional goals and career pursuits.

We invited Janeth Zafra-Mauricio, Executive Assistant to the VP and Executive Vice Dean of Academic Affairs at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, to speak on her journey towards becoming PACE certified and the success she has experienced as a result.

Why did you decide to pursue certification as an administrative professional?

Janeth Zafra-Mauricio: I knew that earning the PACE accreditation would speak not only of my academic qualifications, but of my competence and integrity in the administrative field. I knew it would also highlight my committment to furthering my craft in pursuit of personal and professional advancement while also proving to others that I can provide high-caliber, quality services in administration, organization, middle-management leadership, and project management.

What was your experience going through the course? How long did it take to complete?

When you have the grit to obtain what you deem to be substantial to your career, everything else becomes trivial. Knowing that the PACE certification was what I was aspiring for, I immediately committed myself to taking the course and passing the exam. To help, I drew up and set my own study plans that would work best with my daily work schedule. I used lots of studying techniques, including spider web mapping, formulating acronyms for key words, and creating visual representations. It took me almost a month to study before I felt fully equipped to pass the exam, which I eventually did on the eve of Administrative Professional Day in April 2024!

What topic did you enjoy, or think was the most beneficial while progressing through the course?

I definitely enjoyed the project management module the most. Organizing events, collaborating with various internal and external stakeholders, promoting and marketing, documenting and executing, and all the other steps from A to Z fascinate me. The knowledge I gained was extremely beneficial to my current position. Additionally, the technological aspect of the course was likewise enlightening and challenging, providing me with another avenue to explore deeper in the future.

How has receiving your PACE directly impacted your professional goals and career pursuits?

The feeling of setting a career goal and proudly achieving it through the strong support of your executive leader is empowering. There’s this sense of fulfillment and gratitude, especially when your deeds have been recognized. This was substantial and propelled me towards professional promotion. Since becoming certified, I have been singled out for accolades and have expanded my collaborations and connections. Being PACE-certified has also contributed to my self-confidence as an admin and has boosted my ability to organize and execute organization-wide events. Just recently, I have been nominated and selected as Co-Chair of our employee resource group, Fil-AM CARES, for the 2025-2027 fiscal year.

What advice would you offer to other admins interested in getting their PACE?

For all the admin professionals aspiring to be PACE-certified, remain driven and optimistic. Take studying and preparation seriously, as this is a rewarding opportunity in your career. Read the study guide, follow the tips, and identify your most productive hours of the day to review and comprehend the content. You can also reach out to other successful PACE-certified admins through ASAP’s Circle community and LinkedIn. Take their advice and let it be a catalyst in becoming motivated during the certification process!

More about Janeth:

Janeth Zafra-Mauricio assists the Vice President and Executive Vice Dean of Academic Affairs of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, who happens to also be the Research Integrity Officer of the organization. Her superb organization of the most recently concluded Arts Week 2024 yielded in her receipt of special mentions and praises from core executive leaders, medical practitioners, well known musicians and performers, and colleagues. 

A diligent and adaptive learner, Mauricio exemplifies a commendable “can-do-attitude,” asserting herself to always function at the highest level. She never adheres to the status quo and is always exploring ways to make her work better.

Truly dedicated to her craft, Janeth is an accomplished employee and has been the recipient of Cedars-Sinai's prestigious President’s Award and Friends of Nursing Award in 2020 and 2021. She was also nominated for the “My Socal Hospital Heroes” award in 2023 for her contributions and unparalleled support during the Covid-19 pandemic and is an officer for the Fil-Am CARES Employee Resource Group. In addition, Janeth mentors several Senior Administrative Assistants and continually serves as a resource person due to her expertise and experience. She is an honorary member of Trendsetters and a current member of Toastmasters International, too.

Janeth is a mother of a US navy nurse corps officer, a wife to a professional healthcare worker, a Christian church event leader, an advocate of “God Bless Pa More” (a group that supports community members with hypertension and diabetes), a loving daughter, and a generous friend.

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