Alejandro Varela Iturralde

Major: Civil Engineering

What was it like being among the first in your family to go to college? 

I felt pretty excited but at the same time scared, since it was a mixture of thinking about meeting new people and taking classes for what I want to study, to then lost on where or what is what. Seeing my parents be happy for me and that I came to this point of being the first in going to college, I felt a little pressure but more that I feel proud and thankful for what they did for me. 

What does it mean for you personally to be a part of the FGEN community and, specifically, to be a FGEN student ambassador? 

I'm part of a community/family that goes through the same struggles I felt when coming to college. Instead of doing this on our own, I have the FGen community in helping when things go south and I have no idea what I'm doing. It's better to struggle together than alone, as we can help each other and go through this together and come back stronger. Being an FGen student ambassador, I can guide or just overall be that mentor to get that advantage and be more comfortable in college, whether it is knowing who to ask for help or just overall being able to thrive and face the challenges that we face as First-generation students. 

What is your advice to FGEN students at UP who are facing challenges? 

Ask ask and ask for help. We sometimes have that feeling or mentality where we need to struggle and do things on our own, since it's both us and our families first, asking for help is the best thing to do. I had that mentality of not asking and figuring it out on my own, but it just made things more stressful and complicated, once I asked my community for help, not only was my question answered but also I got guided in a better direction so ill avoid future problems. 

Did a mentor play a role in your experience? 

My high school counselor David, since he really helped me decide the options and where to look at when deciding what school I wanted to go through. Not only was he helping me with college related problems but overall wanted to make sure that I was doing ok and helped me get references such as scholarships and connecting me with other resources to get financial help. He really was a role model and a person that I want to be when I'm playing this amazing role as a FGen ambassador. 

What resources have been significant, meaningful or helpful for you so far during your UP experience? 

The Career Center has been a significant help for me this past year and will be from now on, as they helped me build resumes, cover letters and most importantly helped me find internships to apply for the summer. As not only do they help with applying but they look into the company you want to work for and guide you as your applying, that is making a cover letter, and etc.. Overall they help you in building and creating connections for potential interviews and hiring processes in a job/internship.