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Like in the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, CU-Boulder ended up being just right for Matthias Malojer, 2016 outstanding graduate from the Leeds School of Business.

A native of Innsbruck, Austria, Malojer attended his first year of college abroad, with his parents’ encouragement. He studied international business at Regent’s University in London. But having grown up in the countryside, bustling London was not Malojer’s cup of tea.

So he looked to other campuses and was drawn to CU-Boulder.

“What appealed to me was the opportunity to attend a great business school while never being too far from the mountains,” says Malojer, who – with the Alps as his back yard – has been a skier since toddlerhood. 

In fact, the qualities were so appealing that Malojer applied, was accepted, and confirmed his intention to attend CU-Boulder site unseen. He hadn’t even visited the state of Colorado or the Western U.S. 

“That’s something I’m very proud of,” says Malojer. “I had the courage to do that, to take a chance and step outside of my comfort zone. I admit I was a little nervous.”

Malojer's nerves were short-lived, however. He says things worked out great and he was especially excited to declare his major in operations management, a major that’s not widely available in Europe. Operations management involves how organizations use productivity, quality, flexibility, timeliness and technology to compete and prevail in their markets, according to the Leeds School .

The academic offering was not the only thing that set CU-Boulder apart from collegiate environments in other parts of the world.

“One thing that I really appreciated about going to school at CU-Boulder was the accessibility of the professors in the business school,” says Malojer, who is graduating with a 3.97 GPA. 

While exceling in his studies, Malojer, a self-identified nature guy, also competed in downhill racing as a member of the CU Cycling Team. The balance of school work and getting to pursue his passion for racing, along with the community of friends and fellow racers he became a part of were pivotal in Malojer’s experience at CU-Boulder. 

Coming from a family of entrepreneurs – who run a project management and architecture firm in the commercial construction sector in Austria – Malojer would like to secure a career in Colorado that would allow him to help bring new products and technologies to the market. He says this would allow him to “be part of the change.”

However, he expects getting a job locally to be a challenge given his international status. 

“Most companies do not even consider hiring applicants that don’t have permanent work authorization,” Malojer says. 

While he’ll be dedicating more time to his job search, his backup plan is graduate school. No matter where he lands, chances are good he’ll end up in a situation that’s just right.