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Born in Durango, Mexico, Homero Rivas (PMBA '08) grew up surrounded by doctors. Rivas' father was a general surgeon and Rivas spent much time assisting his father throughout his high school years. He later attended medical school at Universidad Juarez del Estado de Durango (UJED) in Mexico where he graduated at the top of his class.
After graduation Rivas brought his talent to the United States where he completed his residency at the University of North Dakota. He then moved to Louisville, Kentucky, to complete a one-year post-graduate fellowship in advanced laparoscopic surgery with an emphasis in bariatric surgery.
Rivas' subsequent fellowship took him to Australia for one month and later he accepted another fellowship in Spain. While studying in Spain, Rivas took advantage of the opportunity to work extensively with laparoscopic pioneers all over Europe, including spending time in Scotland, Germany and France.
After traveling the world for several years, Rivas returned to Durango to practice medicine with his father and brother. There, he became director of Minimally Invasive Surgery at the Hospital de la Paz and assistant professor of Gastroenterology at UJED.
Although Rivas enjoyed his time home in Mexico and the wonderful experiences he had the UJED, he decided to move back to the United States.
"I moved to Dallas to establish roots and to strengthen the leadership of Minimally Invasive and Robotic Surgery at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center," he said.
Once in Dallas, Rivas decided it was time to live out another dream and attend graduate school at a prestigious institution. Enrolling in the SMU Cox PMBA program in 2006, Rivas quickly found that he could put his education to use right away.
"Only one year into the program I have learned many concepts I'd never been exposed to, even after having been in the workforce for over 13 years," he said. "Now, when I go back to Mexico, I not only get to see my family and perform some surgery, I have been able to apply and teach them many key business concepts literally from all of the courses I have taken at SMU Cox."
For Rivas, a Cox MBA will be a valuable asset to his already remarkable career. One of his career goals is to become a strategy consultant of advanced novel medical and surgical technologies. Rivas has observed a lack of communication between the industry and the health care providers and hopes to bridge this gap with his talent in medicine and his education in business.
"I have a solid background in endoscopic surgery, which is critically dependant upon technology. These skills, coupled with the solid business exposure and education from the SMU Cox School of Business, will equip me well to become a successful strategy consultant in any biomedical field, especially in surgery."
After graduation, Rivas hopes not only to combine his skills in medicine and business, but also to leverage his multi-cultural background in this ever-changing economy and become a successful business leader in the Hispanic community.
"I feel very strongly that attaining an MBA from SMU Cox will allow me to become a successful business leader for such communities in the years to come. Surgery is a big part of my life that I will never abandon, yet having entered the world of business, I believe I can create a synergy that will give me an advantage over my counterparts in both fields."
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