Esperanza Nishizawa

About me

Esperanza is half Bolivian and half Japanese and has had the opportunity to live in 5 different countries (Bolivia, Japan, Spain, Germany, and the US). She completed the Bachelor in Psychology at IE, and has worked in both large companies like Kimberly Clark and small start-ups like WifiAway.
Her last job was at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) as a Learning & Development Specialist for Consulting and Deals, which she started during the last semester at IEU and worked for a year and half.
After gaining a lot of key learnings from PwC, she decided to leave her position to pursue her passion. She decided to further her education and was accepted to IE’s Dual Degree Master in Management and Master in Market Research and Consumer Behaviour. Before starting the Master in January, Esperanza wanted to do something that motivated her. She applied and got an incredible volunteer position for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights for a project to monitor the violation of human rights during the Bolivian elections this year.

Esperanza Nishizawa
Business & Behavioral Economics Analyst at Neovantas
Icono Punto en el mapaIcono Punto en el mapaMap point IconMap point iconJapan / Bolivia
Dual Degree Master in Management & Master in Market Research and Consumer Behavior

"The international environment at IE gave me the capacity to understand different perspectives and different ways of doing things." 

Esperanza Nishizawa

Q&A WITH ESPERANZA

How did your experience at IEU prepare you for your professional career?

Studying psychology, I had the fear that my pool of career options was going to be small. IEU gave me the possibility of trying different areas that I didn’t know about through internships that I did every summer. Another thing that I found to be very useful was the relationships that you get to build with the teachers. Since the classes are not that big, it gives you the opportunity to learn from their personal experiences in different fields.

What is the competitive advantage that studying at IEU provides or has provided you?

I think the main competitive advantage is the international environment that we had. It gave me the capacity to understand different perspectives and different ways of doing things. Additionally, there’s a humanistic approach in all the degrees, which makes you outstanding in comparison to graduates from other universities. I think the main difference with students from other places is the emphasis that IEU puts on developing soft skills.

Do you have any advice for IEU students and alumni who are looking to pursue a career in your field?

If we talk about my background in the corporate world, I would recommend looking for professional experience at every chance you get. That’s the best way to understand if that’s the type of life you want. Regarding the humanitarian side of my life, I recommend always looking for something that you have passion for. You can always do that work alongside any other work. There’s always enough time if you organize yourself. Find and learn the things that make you feel fulfilled, you will always excel if you are doing the things that you are passionate about.

Tell us about the IEU alumni community and the impact they have had in your life and/or career.

Since IEU is not the biggest university, I feel like we are like a big family in a way. My experience with going to IE has been great. I was welcomed by a community of people that simply want to help each other. We all know that this is very unique to studying at IE, so I feel like we all have a great connection.

Why do you think it’s important to engage with the IEU alumni community?

I think IEU has a very particular and special alumni community because it is so international. In my opinion, it would be a waste not to take advantage of that. My classes were good during my degree, but I’ve learned the most listening to people (classmates, professors, people from other degrees) and understanding where they come from.

What skills would you recommend job seekers develop in order to make them more competitive in today’s workforce?

Efficiency is key. The most important thing that I have learned is to find the most efficient way to complete your projects or tasks. Try out different methods to see what works best and apply it. It will help in any job that you have or aspire to achieve and in your personal lives. Being efficient in your careers will also help achieve a great work/life balance.

What’s the best career advice you have ever been given?

The best advice that I’ve ever received is make the ordinary extraordinary.

It doesn’t matter what industry you are in or how big or small the task that you were given is. If you do everything as best as you can, it will be recognized, additionally, you will always keep learning new and useful skills.

If someone was considering going to IEU, what would you tell them?

IEU has a very special ecosystem that is very hard to find anywhere else. Be prepared to break your own prejudices and internal biases and discover an entire world that you wouldn’t have otherwise. It will also help you recognize what your true values are and what matters to you.

What is one thing you wished you knew, when you were a student?

Make the most out of your time at IEU. Try to push your own boundaries and be open to meet as many people as you can. It’s really easy to network, which is great for your professional career, but also (most important I might say) you will make long-lasting friendships that will be there for a lifetime.

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