Josue Silva

Columbia Business School

“Grateful bridge builder focused on improving lives through meaningful relationships and solutions!”

Hometown: Denver, CO

Fun Fact About Yourself: I was (partly) named after a baseball player. When my family first came to the U.S. from Venezuela, they arrived in Denver, and the Colorado Rockies had a standout first baseman from Venezuela named Andrés Galarraga. My brother was a huge fan, so when I was born in Denver, he begged our parents to name me “Andrés Galarraga.” They came to a compromise and gave me Andrés as a middle name.

Undergraduate School and Major: Colorado State University, Majors: Business Administration (Finance)/Political Science

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: U.S. Senate, Legislative Correspondent

What makes New York City such a great place to earn an MBA? As the slogan says, New York is the very center of business. You get to earn your MBA in the largest city in the U.S. and in the global center of commerce. People come from all over to try to get here. New York offers a unique “two-for-one” experience: an MBA education paired with immersion in a vibrant city. As someone who moved to New York specifically for Columbia, I was struck by the broad range of opportunities available and the palpable energy this city emanates. If you want to visit a firm, a quick subway ride can get you to their headquarters in 20 minutes. If you want to attract a speaker, inviting them to New York is an easy draw. On the social side, because the size of the class is so big, AND you’re immersed in this huge and unique city, there is a flavor for everyone. You can truly find your people.

Aside from your classmates and location, what was the key part of Columbia Business School’s MBA curriculum programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? Coming from a nontraditional background, I wanted maximum exposure to different industries and functions. At Columbia, you can take classes taught by leading practitioners in the city in practically any industry and gain hands-on experience. For example, in the spring, I will be taking a new experiential course, called Financial Empowerment Lab NYC, launched in conjunction with the law school. Through this class, we will partner directly with local non-profits and Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) across the city to help drive change. As someone who aims to build a business, I am excited to take classes in the VC and entrepreneurship space, including Investing in Social Ventures and Launch Your Startup. Since the MBA core is only one semester, you have the rest of your time to customize the MBA experience to be whatever you want.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at Columbia Business School? I am really excited about getting to help plan Alleycon, CBS’s annual conference exploring the intersection of VC, tech, and entrepreneurship. I think with my background in government, I can bring a unique perspective and connections in terms of sponsors and generating interest. Last year, the conference featured Andrew Yang and explored changes in economics and the state of global affairs. The hope is that this year’s conference can be even better!

Looking at your recruitment, what was the moment when you realized Columbia Business School was the right program for you? Why? I made my first trip to New York in 2017 for an internship interview when I was in college. I didn’t get the offer, but the trip played a major role in opening my eyes to the range of possibilities. After that, Columbia was the first school I visited when I started thinking about graduate school, back in 2018.

In hindsight, it seems obvious that it was going to be Columbia. I remember having conversations with several admissions officers, like Michael Robinson, and second-year students and alumni, all of whom were generous with their time. I remember connecting with a second-year student, Burke Smith, who came from a similar professional background, and realizing that this career transition is totally doable. Hearing stories from Monica Bolanos and Dan Herrera also helped me think through how Columbia and the New York experience could help equip me with tools to support my longer-term goals. Overall, people were extremely willing to hop on a call and brainstorm ideas through every step of the process, from applying to interviewing to scholarships to moving.

During the application process, every interaction with CBS students and admissions reinforced that they wanted me here. They vouched for me, which was reassuring as the first person in my family to apply to an MBA program. The moment I received the acceptance letter, I instinctively started looking for apartments in Manhattan, and I knew CBS was the right fit. When else do you get to live in New York and have a built-in network on day one?

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: In concrete terms, I would say my biggest accomplishment was getting to lead and play a role in helping businesses and startups navigate the federal government. At Akin, I served as the day-to-day point of contact for a major client, and I got to provide their executives with intelligence and reports that shaped their decision-making. They ended up doubling the size of their retainer with us because they liked the work I did as part of a team.

I also really enjoyed the work I got to do at the intersection of health care policy and trade. At the time, Congress was working on the CHIPS Act, a crucial piece of legislation to improve U.S. competitiveness in semiconductor manufacturing. I got to play a role in shaping some of the conversation with clients around that topic. On a personal level, I have been involved in efforts to promote freedom and democracy in Venezuela, so getting to work with former congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (who had spearheaded this cause during her time in Congress) on related programming at Akin felt like a dream come true.

At a more abstract level, I appreciated the ability to be a bridge builder. It is no secret that we face political polarization and gridlock, particularly at the national level. But I felt as though my experiences in community service and as a first-generation American were helpful in helping me foster inclusivity. In the U.S. Senate, I was able to successfully juggle policy work and constituent service, collaborating with stakeholders varying widely by political party, ideology, and geography to lay the groundwork for connections and solutions.

What do you hope to do after graduation? When I lived in Colorado, I spent a lot of time serving the community through Globeville Community Church, located in the heart of one of Denver’s lowest-income neighborhoods. In the long term, my dream is to lead a social enterprise or venture firm focused on community-building and economic development in geographically and demographically overlooked communities like Globeville. I want to build pipelines of opportunity for people to experience the American Dream.

In the near term, I want to pivot to a role where I can leverage my favorite parts of previous roles—problem-solving, teamwork, data analysis, and diverse industry exposure. I am passionate about helping people succeed, and I am eager to apply my public sector skills in a new context.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into Columbia Business School’s MBA program? Reflect deeply on your story and connect its past, present, and future. Consider how your unique experiences can contribute to CBS and New York’s social fabric. Be thorough in thinking about why you are pursuing an MBA and how it and the city can help you get where you want to go. For someone with my professional background, the MBA is a little less common, so this process helped me refine the logic and story.

DON’T MISS: MEET COLUMBIA BUSINESS SCHOOL’S MBA CLASS OF 2026