While at UIC, Diego focused on international relations as well as foreign cultures, electing to study in full-immersion programs for one year in Madrid and one semester in Paris at Sorbonne University. He was the recipient of a Presidential Award Program Honors Scholarship, the highest scholarship awarded to students at his alma mater. After graduation, Diego returned to Madrid, where he has resided for the past 5 years, teaching English to secondary school teenagers. His linguistic abilities and cultural understanding were deepened after multiple stays with host families in France. Beyond Spain and France, Diego has traveled to 14 other countries, including Italy, the Netherlands, Qatar, Cambodia, Thailand, and Mexico, his grandparents’ home country. Currently, he teaches at a secondary school in a town outside of the Spanish capital, organizing engaging and culturally-enriching projects for his students while preparing them for Oxford and Cambridge English exams. Fluent in Spanish and French, Diego plans to obtain his Mexican citizenship this fall, facilitating his permanent residency in Spain and further advancing his professional and educational pursuits in both Europe and Central America.