Hola! My name is Coral Del Mar Vega Alemañy, I’m 20 years old and I come from La Isla del Encanto, Puerto Rico. In Spring 2019 I transferred from the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez campus (UPRM), to UCF as a junior student to the Biomedical Sciences major. Right now, I’m a senior student pursuing this same major, alongside with a certificate in Global Health in Anthropology.

As a high schooler, I graduated from CROEM, a specialized school in Sciences and Math back at home which I hold dear in my heart since, thanks to this school, I had the opportunity to experience and fall in love with STEM. Some of my favorite classes here at UCF have been Medical Sociology, Neurobiology and Histology, these are all great classes that have really caught my interest not only because of the enthusiasm of the professors (especially Prof. Emily Bradshaw from Introductory Histology), but because the knowledge I got from them changed my life for the greater.

When I look back at my experience in high school, I really feel grateful and privileged to have had such amazing professors who guided me to discover my passion, and I wish to be that person to someone one day, which is why, in Fall 2019, as soon as I saw the opportunity, I decided to enroll in STEM Ambassadors at UCF. Although I am new to this program, a word of wisdom I would like to share with you is that, as they say, if you think you’re small to make a difference, you’ve never been in bed with a mosquito. More kids than you know of haven’t had the privilege like you and I to have that experience that makes us all fall in love with STEM. I think if we all gather up courage to spread our enthusiasm and passion for what we decided to take as our career path, we could make a big difference. Some things I like to do away from school include crafting, crocheting, painting, listening to music, going to the movies, and taking long walks.