My name is Alice Castro, I’m 23 years old and I come from Italy. I am the Tutor of the 10^th Edition of the International Master in Public Procurement Management. Despite having an academic background in International Relations and Political Science, during my studies and especially during the Master of Science in European Economy and Business Law at University of Rome Tor Vergata I had the opportunity to attend a variety of courses focused on public procurement and related areas. Once I bumped into Professor’s Piga Economics of Procurement lectures, I had no more doubt that my heart was for this complex but fascinating and important field, and I also decided to write my final thesis on debarment as a tool to fight corruption and its implications for competition in procurement markets.

My biggest aspiration for the future is to work in the field of procurement in an international environment, ideally in an International Financial Institution’s procurement department. I also acknowledge that I have to learn a lot before pursuing a future career in this field, and therefore I look forward to take the most out of the prestigious IMPPM program in order build solid basis and gain needed competences. But first of all, I am enthusiast about the possibility of being part of this international network of professionals and students with different backgrounds and cultures, coming from all over the world - something that will surely enrich me first of all as a person.