Childhood
"Growing up in my family, there were only two acceptable career choices: engineering or medical school. I'm kind of queasy about blood so engineering it was! I have a lot of civil engineers in my family so I was around that lot and that's where I started out, even though I ended up drifting away a little bit."
College
"I got involved with SHPE as an undergraduate in 2008 and have remained a member since. I feel like SHPE has absolutely directly influenced my career path. I did a lot of community activities, reaching out to the Latino community. I never imagined that I could actually make a career out of it. I eventually transitioned from civil engineering, more towards engineering education"
Grad School
Indhira is now a PhD student at Florida International University studying Engineering Education. Her dissertation is focused on the experiences of being a Latinx engineering student at a Hispanic-serving institution.
SHPE
Indhira feels lucky to have the SHPE Familia around her, lending their wisdom and support, throughout her experience in grad school.
"Every time I come to a SHPE conference, every time I'm at NILA, RLDC, or National Convention, it's like I'm infused with a renewed sense of purpose and a feeling of 'I can do this.' This is important for me because being a PhD student can be very isolating- you are working on your own, doing your own research. Being around people at SHPE events motivates me to keep doing what I'm doing."
Professional
Future
"Being a faculty member would position me to have the biggest impact on the community, on the students, and on the education research that I want to continue doing for the rest of my career."
Advice
"My advice to SHPE members is: Don't be afraid of change. You are going to grow and you are going to learn about yourself. Just be reflective and learn from past experiences. If you have to move forward in another direction, don't be afraid to take that step and carve out a space for yourself."