Following my dreams
I have always wanted to become a Computer Scientist. Still, unfortunately, due to race and gender issues, I never had the opportunity to do this in my homeland, Venezuela.
Regardless of this limitation, I found myself sneaking out to my friend’s houses to play with their computers and Atari consoles. Once we were tired of watching the pixelated characters jump around, I was still enthralled by these giant mysterious machines. In the end, I was able to understand their working on a higher level. I felt like I had gained a new friend.
This exploration with different kinds of machinery repeatedly happened even after I became a teenager. That’s when I decided to take this hobby to the next level and became a tech freelancer. It was 2003, and I knew HTML, CSS, some PHP, some SQL & essential server management – the sky was the limit. Business was good, but I was persuaded to continue my professional education and follow the family route soon after that.
In Mexico, I was expected and obligated to become a nurse, and so that’s what I did. However, after moving to the US, I finally felt like I had the freedom to follow my heart and get my CS degree.
On April 2021, I was accepted at The University of London, and I’m now proudly pursuing a computer science degree. Not only that, but I also decided to challenge myself even more and applied to become a Lead for the Google Developer Student Club at my University.
I’m extremely excited and a bit shy to share this but, I made it. I have been selected as a Lead for my chapter and have been volunteering with Google since Summer 2021.
What’s next? I’m not sure yet, but all I can say is: Trust the process and do not accept prejudice from anybody in any sense. Your hard work WILL pay off. Never question investing in yourself. It is NEVER a waste of time, even if it feels like you’re getting nowhere sometimes.
My journey: Click on the image above to read post.