Onto new horizons after a summer at HEC Paris

Today, Ella is preparing to return to France to pursue a Master’s in Fashion Management at IÉSEG School of Management - a path she believes she may never have taken had she not decided to attend the Summer School program. But her journey to HEC Paris did not begin with certainty. It began with a setback.
 

A LIFE BUILT AROUND ATHLETICS

As a Division I student-athlete at the University of Central Florida, Ella’s life revolved around discipline, leadership, and performance. As well as competing at the highest level, she served as Vice President of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and held leadership roles across business organizations and Greek life.

At the same time, she had always been drawn toward luxury, fashion, hospitality, and global business. Her studies in Integrated Business and Entrepreneurship deepened her interest in how global brands are built. Then suddenly, everything changed.

THE SETBACK THAT CHANGED HER OUTLOOK

A severe shoulder injury that required surgery and months of rehabilitation, forced Ella to step away from the routine that had defined her life. For the first time, she faced uncertainty not only about recovery, but about who she was outside of athletics.

“What initially felt like a setback became a turning point,” Ella reflects.

The time away from competition gave her the space to reconnect with passions she had not yet fully pursued and to begin imagining a future beyond sport.

“The moments that challenge you the most often lead you exactly where you are meant to go,” she affirms.

AN OPPORTUNITY AT THE PERFECT MOMENT

Around that same time, UCF announced that one student would be selected to attend a Summer School program at HEC Paris. Encouraged by her advisor, Ella applied.

The timing could not have been better - the two-week program aligned perfectly with the only two weeks she had free from both dance and rehabilitation.

“In a moment where everything felt uncertain, it also felt intentional,” Ella states. “I chose to fully trust God and believe that I was being guided exactly where I needed to be.”

That decision would ultimately change the trajectory of her life.

FINDING A NEW VISION

From the moment she arrived at HEC Paris, Ella realized she had stepped into something transformative. Surrounded by students from around the world, she was challenged to think more strategically, communicate across cultures, and trust her voice in unfamiliar spaces.

Beyond the classroom, Paris itself had a profound impact. Immersed in a culture shaped by creativity, luxury, and global influence, Ella began to envision a future in fashion and luxury on an international scale.

“HEC Paris was the bridge between who I was and who I am becoming,” she says.

RETURNING TO FRANCE

When Ella returned to UCF, she carried that new perspective into everything she did - from helping lead a nationally ranked Top 5 dance team as co-captain to speaking at UCF’s Go for Launch campaign about leadership and growth.

Today, she is preparing to return to France to pursue her Master’s in Fashion Management at IÉSEG School of Management, becoming the first student from her university to take this path.

Looking back, Ella sees the connection clearly - had she not dared to attend the HEC Paris Summer School, she may never have discovered the future now waiting for her in France. What once felt like the end of one chapter became the beginning of another. And it all started with two weeks at HEC Paris.

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