What brought you to the USA?
I had got to a part of my career where the international experience in two top global firms (JP Morgan and Bain & Company) had given me the ability to work in three different countries and expanded my network at a global scale. However, I felt I needed to built on some managerial and technical skills to progress in my career and decided it was the best time to pursue an MBA. My professional experience with people from all over the world but especially with American colleagues had showed me the importance of not only aiming at top education from the best universities but also get the most out of the personal and cultural experiences graduate school has to offer. Coming to the USA seemed the best option to fulfil a professional goal of getting world class education but also a personal desire and cultural curiosity of experiencing life in one of the world leading countries.

In what are you currently working on?
I am on my first year of the MBA program at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business while on a leave of absence from Bain & Company, Inc.

What conditions do you have here that you do not have in Portugal?
The world class faculty in Business and Economics, the practical approach to business learning and the diversity of colleagues that ensure me a truly global network.

What are your future plans?
I will return to consulting (Bain & Company, Inc.) in Madrid after my MBA to continue working with Spanish and Portuguese companies in some challenging and exciting projects. My medium/long term goals are to return to Portugal and create my own company by building on my experience in different sectors and countries.

Why did you join PAPS?
First, I joined PAPS because a Portuguese friend told me about it. Second, I'm the only Portuguese student that I know at my university. I believe that staying connected with the Portuguese community in the USA is not only a great way to integrate myself quickly in a new environment but also extremely rewarding in a personal level.