CISB student profile: Robby Ryan

Robby Ryan is a senior at the University of Washington Michael G. Foster School of Business, pursuing an option in finance and a minor in Spanish. He is also taking the Certificate of International Studies in Business, Spanish Track.

Robby began studying Spanish during his freshman year at Juanita High School in Kirkland, Washington, and always had the goal of gaining fluency in the language. Upon arriving at the UW, he decided to combine his passion for language, travel and business by joining the Certificate of International Studies in Business Program. After completing second-year Spanish courses, he studied abroad in Santiago, Chile in 2012 as a participant in the semester-long direct exchange program at the business school of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. His study abroad experience gave him the opportunity to immerse himself in the Spanish language and Latin American culture, make friends from all over the world and gain first-hand international business experience.

Last summer, Robby worked as a bilingual intern in the Regulatory Affairs Department at Starbucks Coffee Company, where he focused on product registration and labeling in Latin America. Robby credits the CISB program with giving him the language skills and cross-cultural experience he needed to be successful in his internship.

Robby will graduate in the spring of 2014. After graduation, he plans to return to South America to see the World Cup, visit friends and travel as much as he can. In August, he will return to Starbucks, where he has been hired as a quality assurance specialist.