1. Why did you choose Yonsei to pursue an MBA?
The short version of the story is how a Korean family friend, who is a Yonsei’s Corporate MBA alumna, my current mentor and someone I admire, basically told me I was too young to start my career, so she suggested pursuing an MBA and advocated (strongly) for Yonsei. The long version of the story goes 20 years back, when my mom fell in love with South Korea after traveling there for business for many years, so much so that we even took several trips here throughout the years.
Fast forward to 2020, after graduating and working for a couple of years, I figured I should take advantage of my youth, and the idea of pursuing an MBA came to mind. Around that time the family friend I previously mentioned was visiting our home, we sat down and talked about my new idea which she highly encouraged, and again advocated for Yonsei.
Once I looked into it, it became clear how Yonsei would indeed be a great choice; especially the Global MBA program where people from all over the world come together, making the conversations quite dynamic due to the various cultures and perspectives. Taking that into consideration, the fact that it was highly recommended by an alumna, and being ranked top 100 globally, I decided to apply to Yonsei University’s Global MBA program.
2. What is the most fascinating fact you have learned about coffee and the coffee process?
When it comes to the coffee industry as a whole, I love how there is always new information. Every year people discover new methods to process coffee cherries that produce a completely different flavor profile. Every year there are new innovations that come to the market such as grinders, espresso machines, and even brewing techniques, which all improve the overall quality of the cup of coffee we all like to enjoy. One of my favorite things about the process is the process itself and the people involved; starting from the ones picking the cherries who we get to interact with back in Honduras, to the many roasters around the world we get to enjoy a year’s worth of work in the form of a cup of coffee with.
3. What is your favorite type of roast and why?
Subjectively speaking, I prefer a medium, medium-light roast when it comes to enjoying a cup of brewed coffee. Objectively speaking that is also the recommended roast profile when it comes to extracting the most flavors out of the coffee, this means finding the perfect balance of acidity (not to be confused with bitterness since coffee should never be bitter), sweetness, and a good body. If we talk about espresso, then the roast has to go medium, medium-dark since the extraction process is different from that of brewed coffee. In the end, if I was trying to introduce coffee to my friend, who has never tried it before, I would go for a medium roast since you can get a good balance of flavors.
4. What is your best piece of advice for our juniors?
Never stop collecting experiences, always try new things. Many times the more “random” knowledge you have, the easier it is to connect dots that no one else is able to connect since they don’t have the same life experience as you. In this new globalized world, higher education is a must in order to be on the same level-playing-field as everyone else, therefore what sets you apart is the experiences and perspectives you have outside of that field.
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