Working at Tesla after winning scholarship to study at Tec

Luis Arturo Espinosa de los Monteros Hegmann, a graduate of the Sustainable Development Engineering degree at the Tec’s Mexico City campus and member of the first cohort of the Leaders of Tomorrow scholarship program, is now a Project Manager for Quality at Tesla.

He came to the Tec because of an informative breakfast session at his high school, but he hadn’t thought of it as a university he wanted to study at. However, when he asked for information, he was told about the launch of a new scholarship program called Leaders of Tomorrow.

He applied and won a 100% scholarship to study at the Tec, forming part of the first cohort of Leaders of Tomorrow in 2014.

New challenges and the process of adapting

He studied at an Azteca Foundation School, which he believes provided him with some of the academic background needed for the challenge of studying at the Tec. 

One of his first challenges was to adapt, not only to a new system but also to a new setting.

“Although I came from a very good high school and had an average grade of 95, I had to take extra classes to understand some subjects like chemistry in my first semester.

“It was difficult to adapt to a new setting. My first semesters were very difficult, but I think it was more of a mental barrier because I never heard any classist comments. On the contrary, both my classmates and my teachers understood and supported me,” said Arturo.

It was difficult to adapt to my new setting. My first semesters were very difficult.

“The Tec was my home”

Adapting to a new system allowed him to get more involved with workshops and extracurricular classes. He took singing and dancing classes, leadership courses, salsa, aikido, and was even elected president of the students’ association for the Sustainable Development Engineering degree. 

When talking about his degree, he said that Professor Carlos Antonio Caballero Valdez inspired him to leave his mark on the world and focus on sustainable development.

“The Tec community was amazingly positive because it is a holistic experience including the library, laboratories, and inspiring professors. In short: I love my degree”, he recalled.

“I took advantage of every moment from very early in the morning when I met my friends. The library was my favorite space. I took workshops and then classes. The Tec was my home,” he said.

The Tec community was amazingly positive because it is a holistic experience.

Arriving at Tesla

In November 2019, a year after graduating, a former classmate posted a vacancy at Tesla in a Facebook group. 

“There were some requirements for the vacancy that I did not meet 100%, such as the use of AutoCAD, but I prepared as well as I could for the interview and told myself I’d give it a go,” he said.

After having completed the process, he began working at Tesla as a PV Designer. 

“The difficult thing about Tesla Mexico isn’t getting in but staying in. It’s a company focused on excellence and they’re always demanding good results. But, after six years at the Azteca Foundation School and then Tec de Monterrey, I knew I was ready for it,” he added.

In January 2022, after two years at the company, he applied for an international vacancy as Project Manager for Quality. He is the only Mexican on the team.

“I always went beyond my required duties in my previous position, presenting various projects to my bosses. I constantly sought to improve and simplify processes, and I think that was key to me being given this new role,” he shared.

Reflecting on his short, but fruitful, undergraduate course four years after graduating, Arturo says that he could never have imagined getting to where he is now.

“If something is meant for you, it will happen. The Arturo of eight years ago, who got up at five in the morning, could never have imagined working at Tesla. Luck without effort leads nowhere. You need a combination of luck and effort: it’s the best tool.

“I’m very grateful to the Tec for providing me with the experience, and for having the initiative to search for young people who want to get ahead,” he said.

Arturo started his work at Tesla in May and will travel to California to meet the rest of his team soon. 

“Leaders of Tomorrow really does change lives. I’m confident that, in 20 or 30 years, Leaders of Tomorrow will be entering better positions in politics and the private sector and will be making important decisions to improve society.

“I work for a company that’s doing the unthinkable, and I feel that I’m working for a good cause every single day. As the only Mexican on the team, I will show that we can do a great job,” he concluded.

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