Claudia K. Figueroa

University of Texas at Austin, McCombs School of Business

“Creative, bubbly, and resilient, always trying to live every day with main character energy.”

Hometown: Monterrey, Mexico

Fun Fact About Yourself:  I’m a collector at heart with three growing collections: coins from around the world, “Sniff” tissues with unique designs, and I’m proudly a Barbie collector.

Undergraduate School and Major: Tecnológico de Monterrey (ITESM), B.S. in Food Industry Engineering

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Sigma Foods, Global R&D Lead – Prepared Meals Division

What makes Austin such a great place to earn an MBA? Austin is a dream city. It has a warmth that makes you feel at home from the moment you arrive, creating the perfect environment to grow and explore. What makes it especially powerful for an MBA is how that energy is paired with opportunity, from its rapidly growing tech and startup ecosystem to a dynamic environment full of possibilities. With its outdoor lifestyle, vibrant nightlife, and a culture that makes it easy to meet incredible people, the city itself becomes part of the experience. Combined with the collaborative and passionate community at Texas McCombs School of Business, Austin becomes a place where you feel inspired, challenged, and pushed to do great things.

Aside from your classmates and location, what was the key part of Texas McCombs’ MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? The Marketing Fellows program was the moment everything clicked for me. Coming from a background in product innovation and R&D, I have always loved building solutions, but over time I became deeply curious about the human side behind them: why people choose, connect with, and trust certain products. I realized I did not just want to create products; I wanted to shape the story, strategy, and experience around them.

When I discovered Marketing Fellows, I felt genuinely energized by the possibilities. The program’s focus on hands-on projects, leadership development, and close collaboration with like-minded peers felt like the perfect environment to bridge my technical foundation with my passion for marketing. It was not just a program; it felt like the exact space where I could grow into the kind of marketer I aspire to become.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at Texas McCombs? The course that has excited me most is Leading People and Organizations with Professor Constantinos. Every class felt like a moment of introspection, pushing me to reflect on how I show up, how I lead, and the kind of leader I want to become. What made it especially meaningful was how personal the learning felt. Through exercises like the Best Self assignment and open discussions, I gained a deeper understanding of my strengths and how to lead with greater intention and empathy.

This course reminded me that leadership goes far beyond strategy or execution. It reinforced my belief that great leadership is a journey of understanding what truly moves people, and that continues to shape the kind of impact I want to create.

When you think of the University of Texas, what word comes to mind? Why? Momentum. There is a constant energy that keeps you moving forward, pushing you to grow, explore, and reach further. You are surrounded by driven people and opportunities that challenge you to do more than you ever thought possible.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: My biggest accomplishment so far has been choosing to pursue an MBA and start a new chapter in my life here at the University of Texas at Austin. After building a career in a highly technical and scientific R&D environment, I made the intentional decision to step outside my comfort zone, leave my home country, and bet on my own growth. Rather than leaving that background behind, I see it as the foundation I am building on as I expand into new areas, one that has pushed me to grow in ways I never expected and opened doors to new possibilities. This decision is part of a bigger goal: combine the best of both worlds – science and business – to build solutions and experiences that create lasting, meaningful impact.

Looking ahead two years, what would make your MBA experience at McCombs successful? Success, for me, would mean feeling like I have truly grown into a more confident and intentional version of myself, having found clarity in the path I want to pursue, discovered my true passion, and developed a strong North Star. It would also mean building great friendships and meaningful relationships, along with memories and experiences I can share with my loved ones, filled with laughs and smiles. Above all, it would mean having taken full advantage of every opportunity, leaving no what-ifs behind, and feeling proud of everything I did along the way.

DON’T MISS: MEET THE TEXAS MCCOMBS MBA CLASS OF 2027

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