Background: I was born to Mexican immigrants who encouraged me to pursue my educational aspirations. At San Diego Mesa College, I discovered my intellectual curiosity for understanding human thoughts and behaviors and was drawn to study severe psychopathology. As I finished my time at community college, I chose to continue at UCSD as I knew there was amazing opportunity to get involved in research.
Post-graduation journey: My time in the classroom and in the lab gave me the knowledge and skills to continue my career in research. Being involved in cutting edge neuroscience research with veterans struggling with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder was incredibly rewarding, both personally and professionally. These experiences as an Undergraduate Research Assistant bolstered my CV, making me a competitive applicant as I applied for post-graduate RA positions, eventually landing a position in the Nock Lab at Harvard University.
What are you doing now? In the Nock Lab, our goal is to understand why people have suicidal thoughts and engage in suicidal behaviors to inform precise prediction and prevention of suicide death. As an RA, I am leading recruitment in a study that is taking place in the Mass General Brigham hospital system that aims to provide clinicians in the emergency department with a clinician-decision support tool to better predict which patients are at high risk for suicide attempt in the 30 days following their psychiatric hospitalization. Work on this project as well as other professional development opportunities has made this the ideal place to be as I prepare for PhD applications.
A few words about STARTneuro: When I transferred to UCSD, I was eager to get involved in research but had no idea where to begin. My acceptance into STARTneuro proved to be immensely valuable as it provided incredible mentorship to my cohort of baby scientists, guidance on how to navigate life as a transfer student, created a community of diverse individuals that brought with it a sense of belonging, and most importantly, helped me find my way into a lab that matched my interests and funded the time I spent developing my skills. I have an incredible amount of gratitude for the support STARTneuro gave me and am confident that I would not be where I am today without the program.