From Colombia to the UK: My transformative MBA journey

Durham is one of the most prestigious universities in the UK, located in a UNESCO World Heritage setting. Its academic reputation and research are world-class and ranks highly in international rankings. Additionally, its collegiate system contributes to creating an entertaining student life and a strong sense of community. 

I looked at a couple of business schools and applied to some others, but Durham was better value for money. I think it was the best option and the curriculum was great. The modules, lectures, guest speakers, networking with companies and international business trips were the best possibilities.  

A cousin of mine did her undergraduate degree at Durham and she loved the place and really recommended it. I also spoke to some study abroad agencies and Durham was top of the list. I had a lot of people saying it was a top university and going to be a great place for me.  

This isn’t my first time living in the UK. I lived here for a couple of months, around eight or nine years ago but that was in London. Now I realise London is not England, this is the real England. The north-east of England offers a real taste of the authentic British lifestyle and culture.  

The culture shock when I came at the beginning was tough to adjust to but you start growing in this environment. Since we’re such a small cohort and you know everyone, everybody’s in the same situation and we’re constantly trying to hang out or travel around together as a group. Also, the college system allows you to meet people and make friends quickly. 

From the beginning, I knew I wanted to do a full-time programme. For me, it’s not only about what you learn in class but the holistic experience: living abroad, learning in a different language, meeting people who don’t speak your language, going grocery shopping, managing your private life as well as studying and job hunting. For me, focusing on these smaller details and the intangible experiences really helped me to make the most out of the bigger picture In that sense, the full-time programme made a massive difference.  

It’s such a wide and diverse cohort, not only people who speak different languages from different countries but also people from a whole range of backgrounds and industries.  

You have people who are in marketing, sales, agriculture, who are electrical engineers, even one person from a former military background. It’s amazing the type of skills they bring into the discussion, even the way they speak about certain subjects makes a total difference. The level of the conversation increases in ways you wouldn’t imagine. I think it makes it a much more exciting environment to be in.  

Another thing is that the average age of the cohort here is substantially higher than in the US. So, you have people with massive levels of experience. We have a guy who used to be CFO for Pepsi in Africa, in his mid-40s who brings a massive wealth of experience. It’s incredible the types of knowledge and experience people bring to discussions.  

What being here and interacting with my classmates brings to the table is to open my mind to the point where I’m in a position to go into different industries. You come here and you know exactly what you want to do but being here for a year gives you a different view on what you want to do with your life.  

Learning from other people opens up your ambitions and your tastes. Now, maybe just for example, agriculture is what I want to do, or maybe entrepreneurship or consulting, when at the beginning I thought I was going to do investment banking. This is the real value of the MBA. The learnings gathered here have given me the skills that I need to either transition into different industries or continue developing my capabilities in my current industry.