Discovering Community with Moises Coronado

As National Hispanic Heritage Month comes to a close, we celebrate Moises Coronado. Discover what led Moises to Booth and how the Hispanic American Business Student Association contributes to his sense of community.

By FT Admissions
October 14, 2022
Full-Time MBA Stories
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Moises is a Full-Time MBA student at Chicago Booth who sought out an advanced business degree in hopes of working at a large management consulting firm in the future. In honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month, Moises speaks on his journey to Chicago Booth and the Hispanic American Business Student Association (HABSA) community.

Tell us about yourself and take us along your journey to Chicago Booth

I was born and raised in Los Angeles to two hard-working immigrant parents. My mom immigrated from El Salvador fleeing the civil war and my dad immigrated from Mexico looking for opportunity. As I was growing up, my family and I experienced the disadvantages of being in a low-income, primarily immigrant community and our local church became a support structure for us. Determined to help my family, I sought higher education and was fortunate enough to study Industrial Engineering and Operations Research at UC Berkeley. There I spent time championing the Hispanic community as president of the Hispanic Engineers and Scientists. However, I faced a few difficult personal situations during my time as an undergrad and my home church was there to offer support. After graduating, I was elected as a pastor at the church and I accepted, wanting to give back to the community and further develop as a leader.

After some time as a pastor, I decided to put my degree to use and started working as an Industrial Engineer at Forever 21 where I eventually helped lead their global supply chain optimization efforts. I then transitioned to an Australian supply chain consulting firm where I helped grow the firm in the US and managed all West Coast clients. There I realized that I needed to learn more about managing and running a business while gaining exposure to diverse experiences. With that in mind, I decided to apply to b-school with the hopes of working at a large management consulting firm. This led me to Chicago Booth!

Why was joining the Hispanic American Business Student Association important to you?

Throughout the MBA application journey, I had a chance to connect with multiple members of HABSA, which allowed me to get a good sense for how supportive and inclusive the community would be. They were more than happy to connect me with other Boothies, give me tips, and even helped me prepare for my Booth interview once I received the invitation. I knew that by joining HABSA I would be surrounded by people who would be excited to help me during my time at Booth.

Furthermore, Hispanic Americans, although a growing minority in the US, still remain a heavily underrepresented group in higher education and business leadership. It was important that I not only join the group but become a leader so that I could help others with backgrounds like mine bridge that gap.

How has your involvement in the Hispanic American Business Student Association contributed to the connections you’ve made during your time at Chicago Booth?

HABSA’s events have often led to long conversations with other members about our common backgrounds, life experiences, and career goals which have forged some of my best friendships at Booth. I was even asked to officiate my friend’s (now HABSA alum) wedding this past summer. When it came to recruiting, it was HABSA members who put in double time to help me successfully prepare for my interviews in the winter. It was also a HABSA member who put me in contact with the VC fund that I worked with throughout the Winter and Spring quarters.

What’s your favorite / most memorable event that you’ve attended within the Hispanic American Business Student Association?

My favorite event was a HABSA/AAMBAA bar-be-que at the beginning of the Fall Quarter last year. It was my first time meeting people I had only ever seen over Zoom and I was happy to find how welcoming everyone was. There was great banter, amazing food, and priceless advice from all of the second years. One of the most memorable moments that day was how easily and quickly people were willing to offer help. I mentioned my career goals to a member of HABSA I had met only a few minutes earlier and they quickly connected me to an alumnus who was in a position to help.

What would you like prospective students to know about the Hispanic American Business Student Association?

HABSA is a supportive community of students that will go above and beyond to support you in your journey at Booth. People at HABSA genuinely care about your wellbeing and are more than happy to lend a hand should you ever need it.

Moises with his arms stretched out in the forest

How are you planning to celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month?

I have begun celebrating by visiting and spending time with my family in LA the past couple of weekends. As a part of HABSA, we hosted a Booth-wide LPF (Liquidity Preference Function) to celebrate HHM. This past weekend, we also had our annual HABSA retreat that is filled with events such as a game night and small group dinners.