Raquel has held various positions in the public sector and in international organizations. She served as Adviser to the President of the Republic of Costa Rica, to the Secretary for Political Affairs of the Organization of American States (OAS), and to the Secretary-General of the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB). In addition, she was trade negotiator and Chief of Staff to the Vice Minister of Foreign Trade of Costa Rica. She has served as Coordinator of Specialists in more than a dozen OAS Electoral Observation Missions in Peru, Mexico, Ecuador, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, and the United States. She holds a Law degree from the University of Costa Rica, a Master’s degree in Public Affairs from Princeton University, and a PhD in Political Science from the University of Oxford. As an academic, she has been Assistant Professor in INCAE Business School and has also taught at the University of Oxford.