Program: Data Science
Home Country: Mexico
Universities: Itesm (Tec de Monterrey)
Languages: Spanish/English
Pronouns: he/him

Growing up with a wildlife veterinarian father and a florist mother, I developed a deep passion for animals and plants. Seeing my father's involvement in zoo administration roles and endangered species breeding programs helped me recognize the importance of conserving our planet's biodiversity and being empathic and respectful towards all species. With time, I adopted hobbies like aquascaping, birding, helping with our roof orchard, caring for bird companions, and staying updated about paleontological news. These activities have encouraged responsibility, persistence, and continuous learning from others' experiences.

Unfortunately, during elementary school, I learned that not everyone shared my passion and empathy, as I suffered from bullying from classmates. To avoid escalating the situation, my parents enrolled me in an Okinawan karate school, where one of the bullies also belonged. They stopped engaging with me after seeing my determination and perseverance to level up. Through martial arts, I stopped comparing myself with others and focused on what makes me happy and different, a valuable lesson for accepting my identity. Reaching the black belt level made me highly disciplined in my everyday activities and academic life. Consequently, I began to enjoy courses like math, physics, and chemistry, which gave me a sense of understanding the world around me.

My love for biological sciences and my taste for quantitative topics made me decide to study biomedical engineering. I started self-teaching coding skills through programmable microcontrollers to work with sensor outputs. My international experience at Tokyo's Shibaura Institute of Technology changed my perception of algorithms forever. Teachers' research projects used software to enhance technology, like drones and heavy-duty machinery, to save victims from the debris from natural disasters. Programming was the differentiator for these projects, and they inspired me to return to Mexico, looking for opportunities to implement coding skills in life-changing medical technologies. My academic formation and professional experiences made me value the social impact of biomedical engineers behind building multidisciplinary communities to enhance healthcare services through a holistic view.

What I like about Rice/Houston:

The diversity of the town. (I have great memories of Houston after a family trip for Christmas.)

What I like about Fulbright:

Networking and the opportunity to make a lot of friends from different backgrounds but with similar goals.

Fun Fact about me:

I earned a blackbelt at Okinawan Karate and loved to use traditional japanese weapons. Bo Staff was my favorite, and I competed nationally with it.