Andrew Currey is one of the lucky 2,100 students awarded the Fulbright Scholarship for the 2019-2020 academic year. A 2019 graduate of the Chicago Campus’s I/O Program, Andrew began working on his application in 2018.
“This has been more than a year in the making,” he explained just before he left for a tour of Asia. “It’s a huge undertaking. I applied in October of 2018, but I was meeting with Breeda McGrath {Dr. Breeda McGrath is The Chicago School’s Online academic dean and the administrator of the Fulbright program at The Chicago School} for months before that.”
The long process and hard work resulted in Andrew’s placement in the Binational Business Internship Program. Unique among Fulbright opportunities, the program takes a cohort of 16 Fulbrighters and places them in internships in Mexican companies and gives them an opportunity to continue their studies at a Mexican university.
Andrew will intern at Casa Dragones and take MBA courses at the Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo de Mexico. “Most Fulbright programs focus on studying or conducting research,” Andrew explained. “The Binational Business Internship Program’s focus is the internship. I’m really excited. I’m interested in international business, so getting to work in Mexico and getting an understanding of the business culture of another country is ideal. I can improve my Spanish language skills, immerse myself in the culture and eventually use the experience to propel myself in my career.”
The Fulbright Program is the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program and is designed to build lasting connections between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. Andrew does not take this goal lightly and is honored to have been awarded the opportunity.
“Our relationship is kind of tense with Mexico right now, and it’s a privilege to go and project a positive image. Part of the Fulbright mission is to serve as an ambassador, and I’ll be able to do that. I’ll be fulfilling my own goals and living up to Fulbright’s mission.”
Andrew also hopes to gain an understanding of what motivates Mexican employees and how to best support the mental health and well-being of the LatinX community in the workplace.
“I worked in corporate America and didn’t feel like I was working with a sense of purpose or meaning, or contributing to something bigger than myself. This is an opportunity to do something impactful.”
________________________________________________________________________
Learn more about The Chicago School
If you would like to learn more about our academic programs, fill out the form below to request more information or you can apply today through our application portal.