How my journey to the Philippines brought me to MIT
…and connected me with an incredible mentor
During the summer of 2019, my mom and I visited the Philippines for our first-time to meet relatives and learn more about our heritage. To see as much of the country as possible and to meet as many people as possible, my family rented a van for a two-week road trip. I met a LOT […]
The conflict and the privilege of MIT
I didn't think I could come here, yet here I am, and that made me question everything
The arrival It feels very strange to be writing this. I never thought I would be writing as a student at MIT but after a rollercoaster of events I was given the opportunity of a lifetime: the opportunity to study at MIT. I applied to MIT as a high school student, and after being rejected, […]
How I realized graduate school was the right choice for me
The best ideas come in the bathroom
The best realizations really do come in the bathroom. I was washing my hands in the sink when I heard the bathroom door shut as another girl entered. If you ever lived in a college dorm in the US, you can imagine what a dorm bathroom looks like. It has multiple stalls and sinks so […]
Crafting is engineering, music is math
What I learned from teaching design and engineering to elementary schoolers
I am a serial maker: as a child, I dove deep into a new creative obsession each year. With each medium I explored, my passion for making grew, and projects flooded my house: a giant model of the Parthenon made from recyclables graced our front hallway, a crochet stuffed dragon perched in our kitchen, and […]
How leaving MIT convinced me to stay
Navigating academia and industry as a grad student
Industry or academia? It’s a question at the forefront of many MIT grad students’ minds. I first found myself at this crossroads at the end of my undergraduate career, unsure whether I wanted to follow the path of a practicing engineer or that of an academic researcher.
