About Me
Early life
Born in Puebla, Mexico, in 1994. Growing up, my (mom’s) first priority was to do well in school. I was lucky enough to have supportive parents that believed in me from the start and pushed me to be the best that I could be. I greatly enjoyed video games, music, and playing outside with my friends.
One of the most important lessons in this period came when my dad found me upset because the rich kids used to get waaay more Christmas presents than me. I was a good boy too, wasn’t I? Straight As and never got into trouble. So I was very understandably angry. But then my dad approached me and said “time always puts things in their place“. I realized then that I had to stop waiting for things to fall from the sky and work hard to get them myself. And it has worked way better than waiting for Santa Claus to come down from that chimney!
High school
Studied high school in Tec Milenio, Campus Veracruz. I was addicted to basketball, playing every chance that I got. My dreams to be a professional basketball player didn’t pan out in the end, but I learned the value of perseverance and constant work to be better each day. I wasn’t afraid to spend many hours per day practicing if I believed that it would help me achieve my goals.
I ended up doing pretty well in high school and I got a scholarship to study college at Tecnológico de Monterrey, one of the most prestigious (and expensive) universities in Mexico.
College
Did my Bachelor of Science in Biotechnology Engineering at Tecnológico de Monterrey, Campus Monterrey. Amazing school with a well deserved reputation. I wasn’t obsessed with being the top of the class anymore, but I excelled at the courses that I really liked (programming, maths, statistics, several biology courses). I also kept playing basketball whenever I had the chance, and made several lasting friendships.
These were some challenging years living as a foreign student (from another city) in a tight budget, but I managed to finish as one of the top GPAs in my year. My family’s support was crucial.
Post-graduate studies
Did my Master’s in Bioscience at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, in the Structural Biology and Engineering lab led by Professor Stefan Arold. He wanted a bioinformatician, and I knew nothing about Bioinformatics. But given that my background combined both Biology and Programming, he made a bet that I could learn a thing or two. I am so glad for that chance and the freedom that he gave me to expand my horizons and my knowledge in the direction that I chose.
Currently, I am a PhD candidate in his group, aiming to graduate in May 2024.
Living in Saudi Arabia has allowed me to learn more than I could have imagined. What I love the most is that I am always learning new things, growing, changing, and becoming a better person than I was yesterday.
Current activities
PhD student stuff
Volunteer Firefighter
Scuba diving
Conferences
Exploring Saudi Arabia
Future
I went into Academia with the hope that my work would have a big impact on the world and the people around me. I haven’t lost that hope, and I will try to achieve this through whatever means necessary. Could be by continuing to advance my career in Academia, or by transitioning to Industry. Or maybe I will become an entrepeneur and take matters into my own hands. Only time will tell!