Cornell University, BS Chemical Engineering

MIT Sloan School of Management

Biography

Stwart is currently a 1st year MBA student in the Sloan School of Management. He was born in the Dominican Republic, moved to NY at the age of 11. Stwart attended Cornell University and obtained a BS in Chemical Engineering. Post Cornell, he started in the Energy Industry, spending the next 3 years at ExxonMobil in various roles. During Covid, Stwart pivoted to renewable energy, working as VP of business development and Senior Process Engineer for Utility Global, a hydrogen startup.

Stwart’s Story

What are your future career plans or interests? How did you become interested in this career path?

I want to start my own entrepreneurial endeavor in the field of climate tech/renewable energy to assist the world in the energy transition. I became interested in this path as a young child in the Dominican Republic, which often suffered intense power outages due to an unreliable energy structure, making me understand the importance of energy.  After working for ExxonMobil, I realized that more concrete actions need to be taken from the renewable energy perspective, even if non-renewable energy will always be part of the portfolio. At the end of the day, not matter what great talent works for Oil & Gas Company, they will continue to emit greenhouse gases, so might as well work to expedite the development of renewable energy.

What was the biggest takeaway(s) from your mentoring circle experience?

Don’t be scared to be yourself! We bring a unique perspective, and we should be proud of what we bring to the table! And when our individuality conflicts with the culture of said company, do some introspection and determine if that is the proper environment to be in. There are times to fight and change the culture, but there are other times when it is best to find a new home. Don’t try to be a peacock in the land of penguins if they are forcing you to put a penguin suit.

What advice would you give to other graduate students seeking to build mentoring relationships?

Go for it! The hardest thing is to take the first step to build those relationships. Whether is signing up or sending that first email, just do it. I was at first hesitant in signing up, but I did, and it was one of the best set of experiences I had my entire first semester at Sloan! It has allow me to get a better vision of how to achieve my path forward and I am so excited. So my advice is to just go for it.