After earning her bachelor's degree in graphic design in 2003, María Eugenia Pérez is currently in Seoul, South Korea, pursuing a master's degree in design.
“I ended up in the master’s program thanks to the Alumni Office. I saw this ad that combined two of my dreams: pursuing a master’s degree in design and living in the Far East. My immediate reaction was, ‘Where do I sign?’” she said.
For ten years, he worked in various areas of design—including editorial, e-commerce, corporate identity, audiovisual, and art direction—until he decided to strike out on his own.
In Seoul, he had to learn the language because it was a requirement for his graduate program, and he had to start from scratch. “The Hangul script—which at first glance looks like little sticks and circles—becomes familiar after the first few months. The sounds, the verb tenses, the syntax, and above all, the way we reason are completely different.”
But the graduate explained that “the experience is 100 percent enriching because it’s not just about learning the language, but also about interacting with a society that structurally treats people differently, and that is reflected in their language.”
Why did you decide to study graphic design and then travel the world? “Ever since I was little, I always wondered if, when I grew up, I would be able to have a meaningful and interesting conversation. That was one of the reasons why I’ve always communicated through images. And that’s also one of the reasons why I’m here; I need to open up my world to the world. And that’s what I’m doing,” she said.
When asked about academic life in Seoul, María Eugenia said that “the system in general creates a lot of pressure, both professionally and academically, so time seems to pass at a different pace, and the sense of constant competition creates tension in the environment,” but she is glad that her master’s program and learning a new language require “human interaction.”
“I’ve always stayed in touch with the university—both personally with the professors and academically through continuing education courses and by contributing to internal publications,” he said, adding, “It was a wonderful experience to have studied at Universidad ORT Uruguay. I look back on it fondly and would love to return.”