While in Dakar, Senegal, during her year studying abroad, Tori Agostini ’20 learned how to navigate the French-speaking capital city without being fluent in French.
“It forced me to listen deeply,” she says. “I had to understand what people meant, not just what they said. Often, those things can be different. Even though the experience was quite difficult, the way I communicate with people changed for the better.”
Agostini, an international relations major by way of Columbia, South Carolina, is the latest Pomona alumna to be named a Schwarzman Scholar. In the fall, she will pursue a master’s degree in global affairs from Tsinghua University in Beijing.
As a former senior account manager for the freight forwarder Flexport, Agostini intends to study China’s trade policy to develop international collaboration strategies for the freight industry to minimize disruptions during geopolitical crises.
“I know shipping is not the sexiest topic, but rising geopolitical tensions have brought it to the forefront,” she says. “The way countries choose to collaborate, or fail to, determines if people and businesses have access to essential goods they need to survive.”
The one-year, fully funded Schwarzman Scholars program is designed to build a global community of leaders and is one of the world’s most prestigious and selective graduate fellowships.
Agostini, who’s lived in Denmark the past three years while working for Flexport, was one of 150 Scholars chosen from nearly 5,000 applicants. The Career Development Office (CDO) not only helped her complete the application, she says, but prepared her for the interview process as well.
“Throughout the application cycle, the CDO was in my corner. Their support from start to finish truly made all the difference,” she adds.
While uncertain what to major in at Pomona, Agostini had no doubt she would find a field of expertise. By the time she declared international relations, she had already taken myriad courses across different disciplines.
“The liberal arts curriculum promised experimentation,” she says. “I had the freedom to explore different fields, so I could find the path that was right for me.”
Agostini swam four years at Pomona, just as the Sagehens were starting their upward trajectory. She thrived in a setting where collaboration was imperative to achieve a common goal.
“Learning how to be a good teammate was one of the most important lessons I took from my time at Pomona,” she says. “Accountability, empathy, resilience—these values have shaped who I strive to be every day.”
After graduating, Agostini joined Flexport as an operations associate, handling imports via ocean and air and getting them delivered to their destination. She later transferred to Denmark to support Flexport Europe’s commercial expansion.
In her most recent role, Agostini worked with small businesses across Europe to make shipping easier. With so many moving pieces in her line of work, she applied the skills she picked up and burnished in college to solve problems when they arose.
“I felt encouraged [at Pomona] to exercise critical thought. I worked with talented professors and peers who helped me develop my own worldview,” Agostini says. “It was such a gift to be in a space devoted to learning.”