Abdulaziz AlZamel is in his second year as an ambassador and really enjoys meeting UCR alumni who work with top local companies, like Disney, and asking them questions about their experiences. A Beta Gamma Sigma honors member and recreational tennis player while an undergrad at UCR, AlZamel works to expand his network by reaching out to alumni and prospective students, all of whom may also benefit from meeting fellow professionals.

Bio coming soon...

While serving as her city’s mayor, Daniela Andrade realized how important it was to have a deep understanding of business as she interacted with different entities within the community. As a result, she decided to pursue an MBA at AGSM, and is exploring starting a business of her own. Her role as an ambassador is a natural extension of her public service, and she continues to connect prospective and current students with area businesses for jobs and internships.

Among the reasons Felicia Ansah chose UCR’s Business School is the access to financial aid and its high social-mobility ranking. During her time at the university, she has enhanced her interpersonal and communication skills, ands gained an international perspective along with the opportunity to interact with what she says are the best industry players. As an ambassador, Ansah enjoys helping others and making connections through the many business-related and social university events.

Haad Arif is fascinated by the amount of knowledge, intuition, creativity, and confidence business requires, he says. His education up to now has been pre-med, so he has plenty of experience thinking critically, but he sees studying business as a way to understand how society works. As an ambassador, he pays it forward through providing guidance and assisting fellow MBA students in making solid connections with companies and within the university.

David Ayrapetyan plans to pursue a career in higher education management and focus specifically on the struggles students face. He earned his undergraduate degree at UCR, and considers the university his second home. He chose to continue here as a graduate student because he appreciates the diversity and has a strong sense of belonging. Being a business student at UCR means pursuing a well-rounded academic experience by being involved in extracurricular organizations and activities to supplement studies, he says, and he helps others embrace the Highlander experience.

An international student, Jessica Nunez Cuacuas understands the particular challenges students from other nations face when studying at UCR. To leave your country and family to pursue higher education requires hard work, discipline, and resilience, she says. Nunez Cuacuas routinely takes part in community-service events, including programs with the Greater Riverside Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. This involvement has helped expand her professional network, leadership, and public-speaking skills while earning her master’s degree.

Choosing UCR to earn an MBA made sense to Aniedi Effiong because he sees opportunity in the Inland Empire’s growing reputation as a logistics hub. Among the areas he most appreciates is the opportunity to network with top executives, especially during Speakers Series events, and to learn alongside students from around the world. As an ambassador, he helps students make connections with career development resources and talks regularly to prospective international students.

Before pursuing his Professional MBA, Caspar Gaviria was a business undergrad at UCR and a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon, the university’s men’s Soccer Club, and a mentor in Big Brother Big Sisters of America. As an ambassador, he bridges the gap between UCR and tech industries in the Inland Empire and fosters professional connections by making introductions within his own professional network.

By watching his father and grandfather conduct business and observing their strong work ethic, Zuhayr Islam has the same passion for success and plans to emulate their legacy. Islam previously was president of the Bangladeshi Students Association at Eastern Illinois University, participated in Delta Tau Delta, and served as a student ambassador. These experiences have helped him understand the aid and support that prospective students need.

At University of Maryland College Park, Jen Lai was a student ambassador, which was a very rewarding experience, she says, to be a helpful resource for students and to interact with a diverse group of people. She brings her supportive skills to UCR and helps fellow MBA students. While Lai was initially pursuing an academic career in law, she pivoted to business because she realized that management and interpersonal relations are where her true interests lie.

Isla Li, who is currently part of the Chinese Student and Scholar Association and the AGSM Student Association, introduces UCR and its programs to potential students and helps them with the application process. An international student, Li says she received a lot of support and help from others and wants to pass that aid on to fellow students in the international community because she’s navigated the same new territory herself.

Emily Lor’s parents operated a family-owned business, and while growing up, she was intrigued by how different aspects of business shape the world. As a high school student, she had the opportunity to practice her marketing skills, and that sparked her interest in connecting products, services, and people. Lor is currently an adviser for the UCR chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority, and while attending The Ohio State University, she was part of Pi Sigma Epsilon professional business fraternity, Kappa Kappa Gamma national sorority, and the Malaysian Student Association.

A member of UCR’s International Student Union and the Asian American Christian Fellowship, Hayden Lui brings personal experience to helping students from the U.S. and around the world. He is impressed with the kindness of the UCR community and the friendly interaction with fellow students as they share experiences and learn from each other. He admits to liking graphs and numbers, and as he pursues a deeper knowledge in finance, he also continues to expand his professional network.

For Ramie Mousa, the MBA program at UCR offered the flexibility he was looking for as he is able to create his own course plans to best reflect his interests. He also values the relationships he has with faculty members, which were initially forged when he was a business school undergraduate at UCR. When he first arrived at the university, he says he fell in love with the diverse atmosphere on campus and appreciates the fact that the school’s staff truly cares about students and their successes.

While completing a bachelor’s degree in psychology at UCR, Viresha Anne Perera took an industrial-organizational psychology class, and she understood how psychology could be applied to business. So, she decided to pursue an MBA with an emphasis in marketing and management. As an international student, UCR’s STEM designation within the MBA program was also a deciding factor for her. While studying at UCR as an undergrad, Perera was involved in the International Student Union, International Peer Advisors program, and the Indian Student Association.

To learn more about management, Natalie Qaqish decided to continue her studies toward a master’s degree at UCR after earning her 2015 undergraduate business degree in marketing. She was inspired to study business by her father, who owns his own business. He encouraged her to explore the spectrum of possibilities she would have with her business degrees. She’s steadily built a professional network and continues to be involved in clubs and organizations, which, she says, all help her succeed.

Both a student and working professional, Edith Ren surmounted the challenges of being an international student during her undergraduate education. She says she understands how it feels to be in a foreign country alone, relates very well with new international students, and she reaches out to help them feel comfortable as they earn their own degrees. Currently a technical writer, Ren participates in the West Coast chapter of the Project Management Institute and is working toward a career as a business analyst.

The mix of research, math, critical thinking, and lots of collaboration is what Andrew Rodriguez says he loves about UCR and studying for his MBA. He also appreciates the diversity within the program, and he hopes to share his own experience and inspire future master’s students to expand their networks through the many events at the business school. He earned his undergraduate business degree at Cal Poly Pomona and participated in the National Student Advertising Competition.

Answering prospective students’ questions, listening to their concerns, and offering advice are what Gregory Romero most enjoys about being an ambassador. He was inspired to study business by a favorite professor at Riverside City College and knows how tough it can be to figure out a career path. Currently, Romero participates in the AlphaFamilia Club; as an undergrad, he was involved with the Phi Beta Lambda business fraternity, the DECA collegiate conference, and the Honor Society.

Nadia Said has worked with a number of nonprofits, including the International Society for Children with Cancer, Irvine Disabilities, Downtown Los Angeles Workers’ Union, and the Orange County Global Medical Center. Previously, as a student at UCLA, she worked at the university’s housing facilities. All of these experiences have fueled her desire to help prospective UCR graduate students. She says: You not only learn from what is around you; you also learn from who is around you.

An international student, Amisha Sharma knew she wanted to enroll in a school within the well-recognized University of California, and she also knew she would feel at home in a diverse state like California. Her professional background is in computer science, and as she was working in a customer-facing role, she realized the best way to grow within her career was to expand her qualifications with an MBA. Sharma is a co-chief ambassador, interned with UCR’s International Relations team, and has considerable experience assisting prospective students.

Saxon Chao Song’s courses and involvement with varied activities at UCR, including his role as a portfolio manager for the Hylander Student Investment Fund, affords him an understanding of American business culture, he says. During his time at the university, he has served as a Chinese language-circle moderator and as a business consultant with the NSF I-Corps Startups for Innovators program; he won the best document award at the International Collegiate Business Strategy Competition; and he is a Beta Gamma Sigma honors member.

After earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology at UCR, Jesse Sun worked in retail and food services before taking on a position as an administrative assistant in a tax department. That’s when Sun realized he wanted to dive into the accounting profession, which incorporates his interest in finance and passion for problem-solving, data analysis, and collaboration. He plans to take the CPA exam and work as a public accountant. Currently, Sun participates in the Beta Alpha Psi Honor Society and the Accounting Society, and he has worked with the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program.

As an undergraduate her senior year, Zora Wang did a one-year exchange at UCR, and during that time, she received a great deal of help from professors, stepped out of her comfort zone, and tried new things. That’s how she knew earning her master’s at UCR was the right decision, and she shares her knowledge of the school’s many resources with new students. An international student, Wang works for the Student Union’s publicity department and participates in UCRs Accelerated Business Leaders Education (ABLE) and Master of Business Preparation (MBPP) programs.

Helping prospective master’s students, says Danielle Wright, allows her to be part of something bigger than herself. A member of the ambassador program’s leadership team, Wright is working to establish a mentorship relationship between the Greater Riverside Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Student Ambassadors, which reflects her deep commitment to improving networking opportunities for fellow students. As a UCR undergrad, Wright was vice president of external operations for Phi Chi Theta professional business fraternity and founding vice president of Women in Business at UCR.

As an ambassador, Katherine Wu helps prospective students understand the procedures and deadlines required for entering and succeeding in UCR’s master’s programs. Being a business student at the university, she says, means that she will achieve her career goals and pursue her dreams because the professors, the administration, and other ambassadors are always willing to help her succeed, and she’s eager to provide the same support to others.