Blog Post #2

 

• Do you feel that your identity (gender, race/ethnicity, family, culture, age, rural/urban upbringing, etc.) has influenced your educational journey and mindset?

My identity has influenced me to get to where I am. I was born and raised in Peru, a third-world country where in some parts, it is still believed that women are not as bright as men or simply not good enough to go to school. My parents didn’t raise me this way, and I am thankful for that. However, when I openly talk about my major to extended family, they comment, “why didn’t you choose something easier?” “don’t you want to have children? It sounds like that would take a long time of your life?” My family had a lot of influence on me, having such a hard time deciding what to study what to pursue. I switched majors many times, so I stayed in a community college for so long. It was almost as I had convinced myself I couldn’t do what I wanted because I was not thinking of myself but others. However, I changed this mindset, and now I hope to graduate next year with a B.A. in Biology.

• Do you feel that your identity has influenced your sense of belonging in STEM?

Yes. Growing up, I would always watch science cartoons, tv shows, or movies that predominantly included men as a figure of a “scientist.” When I was about ten years old, I realized that I would often see more men than women in science-related jobs. For example, every doctor was male when we took my husky to the vet for his arthritis treatment. However, as I became a teenager, I realized that things were changing. I began to see more women in science fields. I would see more female veterinarians, more female doctors, female electricians. Being a female and wanting to pursue Biology suddenly did not seem so scary anymore. I thought I would never feel like I belonged in STEM because I am a woman, or perhaps not belong as a man does. Now that I am in STEM, I have found other females that feel the way I think, and it brings me a sense of peace to know that I am not alone.

• Were you encouraged to pursue STEM from a young age, or did you end up in STEM despite your experiences in your younger years?

I was not encouraged to pursue STEM until I was a teenager. I believe my mom didn’t expose me to science much because she is not a “science” lady. She, unfortunately, did not have access to the education I had. If anything, my father had decent knowledge about medicine (he worked in a pharmaceutical office), but he was not around much to talk to me about his work. Growing up, my brother had a massive interest in dinosaurs. He would read, talk, dream about them. He was my best friend, so I would always listen to him and his documentaries. They made sense. Evolution made sense. Therefore, I learned more and more about dinosaurs, reptiles, evolution, biology, etc. My brother was such a significant influence on my educational career. Sometimes I believe that if it were not for him, I probably would not have found out how much I like to learn how organisms function.

• Did you have any role models that influenced your educational path?

My brother, Renato, was a significant influence on my education. I come from a low-class family from my mother’s and father’s families. My brother is the first member of our family to pursue a STEM degree. He became an electrical/mechanical engineer a year ago. Because of him, I knew that I could become anything I wanted to. He always wanted to help me with my homework and motivated me to keep pursuing my interest in science.