Although my experience in the United States has been challenging and rewarding, it is in Brazil that I aspire to make my greatest personal and professional contributions. Regretfully, the Brazilian political and economic situation has been characterized by a state of national crisis and disorder. The country’s need for economic development and foreign investment is tremendous.

While many attempts have been made to promote foreign investment in Brazil, the current volatile situation has been a strong deterrent. It is within this convoluted environment that I intend to apply my business skills and knowledge. My career goal is to create and run my own business consulting firm in Brazil, providing international firms and investors with the leadership, guidance, and partnership required to thrive in the Brazilian business environment. As a Brazilian, I do not see any other role I can play with more passion or desire.

While Brazil offers opportunities in many industries, I intend to focus in the construction and real state development industry. Brazil already has many large and competitive construction companies, but there are still substantial opportunities for growth and development. With a population that exceeds 150 million people, Brazil represents the seventh largest market in the world and the largest economy in South America. Not surprisingly, Brazil’s biggest business partner is the United States. Yet American companies have yet to recognize the country’s full potential. The markets for automobiles, personal computers, and pharmaceuticals are far from saturated and benefit from an ever-growing demand for such goods.

I plan to operate within this niche by extending the knowledge I have acquired in the United States -- leading projects and identifying opportunities -- to Brazil. My firm will guide international firms and investors from the initial stages of market identification through site selection, construction, and start-up with partnership, knowledge, and confidence.

The broad and well-grounded knowledge of the engineering and construction industry I have acquired during my five years of experience with Fluor Daniel forms the foundation for my enterprise in Brazil. Through Columbia's MBA program, I plan to further build on this foundation by leveraging the experience in engineering and international management I have accumulated both in Brazil and in the United States.

I have performed the design of several massive industrial and chemical process structures, such as a $430 MM chemical plant for Wellman in Mississippi and the rebuilding of a $350 MM Milliken carpet plant in Georgia. I have always been in the forefront of my profession, searching for innovative ways to solve engineering problems by integrating knowledge and technology, reducing cost, and increasing design serviceability.

Over the past two and a half years, my passion for this industry has deepened substantially. I have been involved with the execution of several large construction projects. I have led the $410 MM General Motors project in Brazil and, currently, the $450 MM Aladdin Hotel and Casino project in Las Vegas. Brazil proved particularly exciting, since there I took on the dual role of lead contractor and cultural ombudsman. Decisions and discussions took on greater importance as I integrated opposing interests, developed common values, pushed cooperative continuity, and attained the objective -- project completion with collective success -- while interpreting language nuances and cultural disparities. Experiencing the first-hand impact that a project of that magnitude has on the local community was one of the most fascinating aspects of the experience. It was exciting to witness the changes that the new plant was already promoting in the area.

New businesses were flourishing on a daily basis. This is precisely the type of impact that encourages me to further grow, develop in my career, and pursue my goals.

The Aladdin Hotel and Casino Project in Las Vegas has also been a unique experience. Cost overruns, schedule delays, low morale, and management disrespect had been rampant over the previous year. It has been up to me to change the status quo, secure project stability, and achieve project success. Leading the changes on the Aladdin Project has served to reinforce my belief that values such as honesty, integrity, consistency of purpose and actions, accountability, and respect form the basis for one’s position as a leader. These values have provided me with a strong and solid foundation to perform my work. The results to this point have been very encouraging: a 40-story hotel tower, completed on time, within budget, and exceeding the industry safety records.

While I am certain that my professional experiences so far will prove extremely valuable in achieving my goal, I seek an MBA in order to acquire the knowledge of the commercial aspects of real estate business, develop acute marketing and finance skills, and refine my management abilities. I have selected Columbia's program for several reasons: curriculum, location, global environment, and reputation. Columbia’s curriculum specifically addresses and focuses on the knowledge and skills that I need to acquire in order to achieve my goals in Brazil. The school's real state development track (which I intent to pursue) is second to none. I also plan to take electives in international business in order to obtain the skills I need to launch my business.

Finally, I will take advantage of the numerous elective courses in finance and economics.

Columbia’s teaching method is equally important for me. I believe that, while certain subjects can be better illustrated utilizing case studies, other concepts are best mastered through lectures. At the same time, cross-discipline group projects are ideal in simulating an actual business environment. Columbia's program features all three of these methods. I believe this approach will provide me with a holistic perspective of business, maximize my learning experience, and allow me to contribute the most as a student, as a professional, and as an individual.

Columbia’s location plays a very important role in my program selection. New York City's plethora of resources is unparalleled, and the proximity to great firms and institutions offers unmatched opportunities for me to forge professional contacts. Having lived in Las Vegas for over a year, I am used to a complex, dynamic city, and I know from experience that I thrive in such environments.

The international focus of Columbia’s environment reflects the type of environment that I have worked in. Throughout my career, I have worked with an international and diverse group of brilliant individuals. Starting in college, at the Construction and Automation and Robotics Laboratory, I worked with individuals from China, Korea, India, Equator, Jordan, and Egypt. There I developed an appreciation for the synergy that a diverse group of individuals can generate. At Fluor Daniel, I continued to work with an international body of professionals. I have no doubt that Columbia will be a perfect match for my abilities and desires.

My career aspirations are ambitious, but I am certain that I will attain them and thereby become a driving force in Brazil’s business economy. I turn to Columbia not just for its reputed excellence, but also for the key qualities of its pivotal environment: global, strategic, driving, challenging, and interactive. This is precisely the type of environment in which I have worked and succeeded; it is in this type of environment that I will continue to thrive.

點評：

這是一篇申請MBA的小ESSAY，全文共13段，可以分為2個部分：為什么要讀MBA；為什么要讀哥倫比亞的MBA。其中還加插了自己的一些工作經驗，自己的職業目標和前景的展望等。整篇文章條理清晰，例證充足。先說自己讀MBA的原因，描述了一些自己以往的工作經驗，自己的職業目標要通過掌握一些商業知識才可以實現，所以萌生了去讀MBA的想法。接著再用5段解釋了一下選擇哥倫比亞MBA的原因，注意結合了自己的實際，不是空泛地列舉一些學校好，排名前之類的無用信息。這是本文的一個亮點，從自己的過去推導到要讀MBA的這一想法，舉一些實際的例子，使讀者對于作者產生這樣的想法有一個直觀而且符合一般邏輯性的認識。

作者通過例子向讀者，尤其是想向招生委員們展現了自己的領導能力和合作精神。作者巧妙地將自己合作精神強的例子安插在解釋為什么選擇哥倫比亞MBA課程里，既讓學校知道這個申請者是認真研究過學校的特點，也展現了自己具備MBA申請者必須具備的因素之一——合作精神。

譯文：

盡管我在美國的經歷是充滿挑戰性和收獲頗豐的，但我卻想將我最好的個人和職業發展貢獻給巴西。遺憾的是，巴西的政治和經濟狀況特點卻是一系列的危機和社會混亂。這個國家急切需要發展經濟和國外的資金注入。但很多因素阻礙了巴西吸引外資，最近的暴亂就是一個很大的阻礙。我正是想把自己的商業技巧和知識運用到這種動蕩的環境中。我的職業目標就是在巴西成立和經營我自己的商業咨詢公司，為國際公司和個人投資者提供領導決策力，指引和合作，而這些也是巴西商業環境繁榮發展所需的。作為一個巴西人，我看不到還有什么比這個更能讓我投入熱忱和渴望了。

巴西給很多行業提供了發展的機會，我打算將公司發展的重點集中在建筑和地產發展行業。巴西已經有很多大型和競爭力強的建筑公司了，但一家公司要成長和發展還是大有機會的，因為擁有超過1.5億人口的巴西是世界第七大市場，同時也是南非最大的經濟體系。毫無疑問，巴西最大的商業合作伙伴就是美國。然而美國的公司還沒有完全發現這個國家的全部潛力。汽車，電腦和藥品的市場尚未飽和，而且市場的需求量還在不斷增長。

我打算在巴西增加我在美國所獲得的——帶領項目和把握機會方面的知識，讓我在這個領域可以有所發展。我的公司會給國際集團和個人投資者以指導，從最初的市場定位到位置確定再到構建，也會在開始時給予合作，知識和信心方面的支持。

在福陸丹尼爾公司工作的那5年讓我在工程和建筑產業方面有了廣闊而且扎實的知識，而這些知識就是我在巴西開展自己事業的基礎。選擇哥倫比亞的MBA課程，在巴西和美國，我都累積了一些在工程和國際公司管理方面的經驗，我打算通過運用這些經驗，進一步擴大我的知識基礎。

我參加過許多大型的工業和化工過程結構的設計，例如為威爾曼在密西西比建一個樁柱每毫米430美元的化工工廠；為美麗肯在喬治亞州重建一個樁柱每毫米350美元的地毯工廠。在我自己的工作崗位上，我也常常是身先士卒，想要尋找一種有效的新方法去解決在工程上遇到的問題，于是我將知識和技術有效地結合，降低成本和增強設計的可用性。

在過去的2年半時間里，我對這個行業的熱情持續高漲。我曾經參與執行過幾個大型的建筑項目。由我指揮的項目有：為通用汽車在巴西建的一個樁柱每毫米410美元的工程，還有最近，為阿拉丁酒店娛樂城在拉斯維加斯建的一個樁柱每毫米450美元的工程。既是首要承包人也是文化的調查者，這種雙重的身份讓我體會到了巴西帶來的獨特興奮。處在這種語言不同文化又有差異的環境中，當我要顧及對方的利益，擴大共同的利益，維持合作的連續性和達到最終目標——以共贏的方式完成項目時，果斷和討論顯得尤為重要。體驗一個大型的工程給當地的社區帶來的那種直接影響就是這項工程最大的魅力所在。能親眼看到新工廠在那個地區發展起來，我很激動。

新產業日益繁榮。正是這種跡象鼓勵我成長，發展我的事業和實現我的目標。

在拉斯維加斯建阿拉丁酒店娛樂城是一次獨特的經歷。預算超支，工程延期，士氣低落和管理不當等現象自從去年以來一直很猖獗。要由我來改變這種現狀，維持項目的穩定性和完成項目。帶領阿拉丁這個項目增強了我的信念：誠實，正直，目標和行動的一致性，責任心和對他人的尊重這些價值觀構成了一個領導者所必需具備的素質。這些價值觀讓我在工作中有一個堅實和鞏固的基礎 。最后的結果很鼓舞人心：40層的高樓，按時完成，沒有超出預算，建筑的安全指數也打破了紀錄。

我肯定我的專業經驗會幫助我實現目標，選擇MBA的課程是為了能獲得房地產方面的商業知識，培養一種敏銳的市場和金融技能以及使我的管理能力更精煉。我選擇哥倫比亞的MBA課程有幾個原因：課程設置，地理位置，國際化的氛圍以及良好的聲譽。哥倫比亞MBA的課程設置著重點在于知識和技能，而這些正是我在巴西發展我自己事業所必需的。這所學校的房地產發展方向（就是我想申請的專業方向）是首屈一指的。我也打算選修國際商業以便獲得在創立我自己公司時所需的一些技能。

最后，我會合理利用眾多的金融和經濟方面選修課的資源。

哥倫比亞的教學方式對我同樣重要。我相信通過案例學習能更好地抓住一些主題，通過講座能更好地理解一些概念。同時，跨學科的小組討論能很好地模擬一個真實的商業環境。哥倫比亞的MBA課程有上述的3個優點。我相信這些課程可以幫助我構建一個整體的商業前景，使我獲得最佳的學習經歷，也使得我能以一個學生，一個專家和個人的身份去作最大的貢獻。

哥倫比亞的地理位置在我選校的時候也起了一個很重要的作用。紐約市的豐富資源是無與倫比的，與大公司和企業毗鄰，給我提供一個極好的機會去接觸專業人士。在拉斯維加斯住了一年多以后，我已經習慣了復雜和動感十足的大城市生活了，從以往的經歷可以得知，我在這樣的環境下會發展良好。

哥倫比亞的學術氛圍傾向于國際化，而我之前一直在這種環境中工作的。我的整個職業生涯中，我一直都在一個國際化和多樣化的團隊中，和一群優秀的人合作。這種經歷大學時代就有了，那時我在建筑，自動化和機械實驗室里，和來自中國，韓國，印度，赤道，約旦和埃及的同學一起做研究。在那里，我學會了欣賞一個組員多背景的團隊里的合作。在福陸丹尼爾公司，我繼續和一支由國際專家組成的團隊合作。毫無疑問，哥倫比亞的國際化環境將與我的能力與要求相吻合。

我的職業前景是宏大而且充滿野心的，但我肯定我會實現我的目標并且成為巴西商業經濟發展的一個動力。我之所以選擇哥倫比亞不僅因為它的名氣，也因為它學術氛圍中所包含的一些關鍵特質：全球化的，戰略性的，精力旺盛的，富有挑戰性的和交互性。我正是在這樣的環境中工作和成功的；我也將會在這樣的環境中繼續成長。