Gabriel Melo

London Business School

“A determined and curious individual who loves connecting with people from diverse backgrounds.”

Hometown: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Fun Fact About Yourself: Despite working in Private Equity and in Investment Banking, which can be a highly pressurized and stressful environment, people are always surprised by my “easy-going” attitude towards life. I am also a travel and sports enthusiast. Cycling, hiking, and surfing are my favorite outdoor activities. I believe that staying active and getting to know new people and cultures is very enriching for both personal and professional life.

Undergraduate School and Major: Federal University of Rio de Janeiro – Mechanical Engineering

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Mubadala Capital – Private Equity Senior Associate

What makes London such a great place to earn an MBA degree? London is one of the most vibrant and culturally rich cities in the world and LBS is located in the heart of it. Moreover, LBS’ MBA class is composed of individuals from the most diverse geographies and backgrounds, with no majority concentration in any nationality. As a top-ranked global MBA school, this combination of a high-quality curriculum and a truly diverse student body creates the perfect environment for preparing students to become real global leaders able to drive impactful societal changes.

London Business School is one of the most culturally and professionally diverse MBA programs in the world. How do you see these global perspectives enhancing the value of your business education over the next two years? Any possible post-MBA goal a student has won’t be achieved alone. It is impossible to lead people and organizations or to drive meaningful societal changes without support or without connecting with and understanding other people. Pursuing practical in-class and extracurricular activities with a highly diverse group of people will help to simulate real-life situations that I will face in my career, as I develop myself to become an impactful leader in my industry.

Aside from your classmates and location, what was the key part of London Business School’s MBA curriculum and programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? I am a finance professional who wants to further develop myself to pursue a career in this industry and learn more about investing in business driving positive societal impacts. I believe LBS’s curriculum provides exactly what I need. Here, I will be able to benefit from a strong curriculum for developing leaders in the financial industry with an angle to manage and invest in responsible businesses.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at London Business School? As for courses, I am particularly interested in Managing and Investing in Responsible Business and Leading Teams and Organisations. These courses will allow me to further develop myself to become a leader in the investment industry, with a focus on responsible investing for clubs and activities. I look forward to joining the Private Equity and Venture Capital Club, the LBS Cycling Club, and the First Generation, Low or Intermediate Income Club. In particular, the latter will allow me to connect with other individuals who share similar backgrounds and have particularly inspiring stories to tell about what they’ve achieved. I also look forward to connecting with other scholars whose scholarships are affording them the opportunity to study at a world class business school. I am certainly grateful to the Wei Family Scholarship for the opportunity it has afforded me.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Coming from a low-income family in Brazil that did not have access to good education, it is nearly impossible to imagine that a newborn would one day be working alongside the best professionals in finance in the country, in one of the most active Private Equity funds in Brazil. My biggest accomplishment to date is the culmination of each significant step in my career journey. This started with earning scholarships for academic excellence and pursuing a top engineering program in Brazil to working at some of the most competitive banks in Latin America. Ultimately, I became a senior associate in Private Equity, where I’ve led billion-dollar transactions in Brazil. Each milestone has contributed to this achievement.

What is your unique quality that will enable you to make a big contribution to the Class of 2026? I often assist students with their preparation and application processes by working on cases together. I have also interviewed several private equity candidates and participate in their case discussions at my most recent job. At LBS, I want to use this experience to help MBA candidates aspiring to work in finance to sharpen their preparation process and share this insider view I have acquired over the years.

I am eager to engage in business case discussions, leveraging my experience in developing complex transaction structures across various industries and stages. I am also excited to lead investment case discussions in LBS’ Private Equity & Venture Capital Club, as I did in my university’s finance society.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into London Business School’s MBA program? I strongly recommend learning as much as possible about LBS before selecting the school to ensure that it’s a good fit for you. To have the best MBA experience, it is important not only to choose a top school, but also to align with the school’s core values of diversity, inclusion and belonging. In addition to the various materials available online, reaching out to the alumni network can provide deeper insights into their experiences and help you to start networking even before the course begins.

DON’T MISS: MEET THE MBA CLASS OF 2026: THE ‘DO ANYTHING, BE ANYONE’ COHORT