Posted on November 1, 2023 by Rebekah Alegria
Erika Zuloaga Cosme, M.A. ’19, a marketing doctoral student in the Carlos Alvarez College of Business, was selected as a recipient of the Valuing Diversity Ph.D. scholarship from the American Marketing Association.
The scholarship seeks to widen opportunities for underrepresented populations attending marketing doctoral programs.
“I was attracted to this scholarship because of its purpose–to value diversity,” said Zuloaga Cosme, who was encouraged to apply by her professors. “Diversity can mean many things, from gender to race to sexual orientation. It’s helping people that may not have the resources to continue their education.”
Teaching marketing capstone courses and working as a research assistant at the college, Zuloaga Cosme will use the scholarship award to fund her research and to extend her ability to present her findings at conferences across the country.
“I am passionate about learning, and I am passionate about my students. It is important to know their backgrounds and recognize where they come from. Being able to direct them to achieve their goals is of the utmost importance for me,” she stated.
Zuloaga Cosme pursued her B.B.A. in Economics from The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and her Master of Arts in Economics at The University of Texas at San Antonio. Her strong connections to the professors in the college encouraged her to continue her education and obtain her Ph.D.
“I’ve always been interested in technology, mathematics and science fiction. There are new technologies constantly coming out, and now I find myself asking how is this going to impact consumers and society at large? That is why I chose to go into the marketing field,” she said.
With the guidance of Deepa Chandrasekaran, department chair and professor of marketing; Ashwin Malshe, associate professor of marketing; and alumnus BJ Allen, ’17, assistant professor of marketing and global supply chain at BYU, Zuloaga Cosme is heavily involved in marketing research. Her collaborative projects include examining diverse professional experiences of marketing executives, the various ways AI augments innovation processes in companies and the emergence of AI technologies such as Chat GPT and its effects on the market.
Zuloaga will present her research on the importance of diverse professional experiences for marketing executives at the upcoming 2023 American Marketing Association conference in Nashville, Tennessee this winter.
— Rebekah Alegria
