Daniel Vermehren-Herrera
I was born in Washington, D.C. in the United States and grew up between Washington, D.C. and Frankfurt-am-Main in Germany. I’m half German and half Mexican. My life passion is making music with others: I’ve been playing on stage (drums, oboe, saxophone) ever since I can remember. I would describe myself as motivated, creative, empathic and always willing to learn and grow.
“While impossible to completely solve, I want to at least do my part in lifting others out of poverty however I can.”
A passion for music and helping others
Daniel Vermehren-Herrera is truly a global citizen. With a German mother and Mexican father, he grew up in a multilingual household. He speaks German, English and Spanish fluently, and modestly describes his French as “good-ish.” Before embarking on his current master’s program, Daniel studied the Bachelor in International Relations at IE University. During the program, he undertook a number of internships, including roles with a German development bank and with the Hope for Justice and Slave-Free Alliance in Ethiopia.
Daniel’s most recent internship was with 25onehundred, a social impact company committed to tackle the world's ten largest challenges through youth empowerment and innovation. This dedication to helping solve the issue of poverty forms the basis of his career aspirations, and led to his decision to pursue the Master in Applied Economics. With a bachelor’s degree already under his belt, he felt that he had gained a breadth of knowledge, but now wanted to hone his focus more specifically. He already had an interest in economics, but now felt he needed to study the subject in greater depth in order to fulfill his career goals.
Progressing from a bachelor’s to a master’s program is not always easy, and Daniel’s advice for prospective students is to “be ready for many, many hours of studying” as the pace of the Master in Applied Economics is much higher than that of a bachelor’s degree. He now recognizes that his prior knowledge of economics was limited, but despite the challenges, he is enjoying the classes.
Daniel also praises his professors, who he finds very engaging, with a wealth of prior academic and professional experience. He describes how his professors are passionate about their areas of expertise but even more passionate about passing their knowledge on to students. They are, he says, aware that the program is challenging and are always approachable when students need assistance, whether academic or personal—such as missing classes due to family emergencies. Daniel also highlighted how IE University offers outstanding opportunities for students to continue their professional journey after graduation, including hosting workshops and conferences and advertising exclusive job opportunities.
“All professors are absolute experts in their fields, and are passionate about passing on that knowledge.”
For Daniel, IE University is “a fun and incredibly diverse setting”—with students from ten different countries in his class of fifteen! He is particularly impressed by the motivation of the students and the high level of cooperation and group work. As the Master in Applied Economics is a relatively new program, Daniel appreciates the fact that IE University has been receptive to feedback from students and has already made some minor changes in response, such as offering booster modules for the one-third of students without a background in economics.
Although Daniel is still busy with his studies, he intends to take advantage of the many opportunities offered by IE University to further his career prospects. He’s open to working in the public or private sector, but his global mindset and humanitarian focus will no doubt be at the forefront of his future plans.
