Simon Cormack

Rice University, Jones Graduate School of Business

“An Argentine Texan doing his best to make his friends and family proud.”

Hometown: Houston, TX

Fun Fact About Yourself: I was only two months old when my parents moved our family from Buenos Aires to Houston, TX looking for the proverbial American Dream. I believe most people in my position do identify as full-blown American. Even still, during the 2022 World Cup, that all went to the wayside. I was once again nothing more and nothing less than any regular Argentine. A fun fact about me, that I proudly admit, is that I shed a tear or two watching Lionel Messi lift the World Cup trophy.

Undergraduate School and Major: Bachelor of Science in Economics from Texas A&M University

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Division Order Analyst for Petro Ledger Financial Services

What has been your favorite part of Houston so far? Why? I have a high level of bias when it comes to loving Houston. Having grown up here, my favorite part of the city is my support system. I was lucky enough to not leave behind my family, my friends, and my girlfriend to go to graduate school. Going back to school after a couple years of working was a big transition for me. The support system I already had within the city made it very easy for me to not miss a beat.

Aside from your classmates and location, what was the key part of the Rice Jones MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? In terms of programming, the Global Field Experience is what really popped out as a prospective student. For context, Rice Business requires every full-time student to engage in a consulting project with a real company abroad. The last couple of years the school has really focused on connecting their student teams with companies in developing economies, mostly in Latin America. I was excited to join a program that didn’t just offer this as an opportunity for their students, but thought it was such an important part of building well-rounded business leaders that it is required. This summer I will be flying to Sao Paolo, Brazil to complete my GFE.

What course, club or activity have you enjoyed the most so far at Rice Jones? Rice Business has a student-run, application-only club called “Board Fellows.” If accepted to the club, the student will be given an actual non-voting board seat on a local nonprofit’s board for a whole calendar year. I fell in love with the idea when I heard about it and immediately applied. I was lucky enough to be accepted and placed on the board of Advocates for Immigrant Survivors. AIS provides 100% free services to immigrants who have suffered from sexual or domestic abuse. The services include things like legal counseling or social work. I highly recommend anyone interested to look into AIS and consider donating! It is a great organization I would never have connected with if it weren’t for Board Fellows.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: The biggest accomplishment of my career was being accepted into Bain & Company’s BASE Scholar program. The program consisted of a week-long pre-MBA internship and an offer to join their Houston office as a 2024 Summer Associate.

Describe your biggest accomplishment as an MBA student so far? I would have to say being accepted into Bain & Company’s BASE Scholar program is also my biggest achievement as an MBA student.

What has been your best memory as an MBA so far? My best memories have all happened during the weekly Partios at Rice Business. There is something special about topping off the week sharing a couple drinks with my classmates. It is certainly a highlight of the experience at Rice.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into the Rice Jones MBA program? Reach out early and often. Talk to current students, faculty, admissions. The more contact you can have with the school the better your chances are of being accepted. The entire community at Rice Business is very keen on helping candidates who show the initiative of reaching out.

DON’T MISS: MEET THE RICE JONES MBA CLASS OF 2025