Biosketch
- Name: Xonyia Vang
- College: Kennedy College of Sciences
- Major: Computer Science
- Hometown: Fitchburg, Massachusetts
- Favorite hobbies: Digital Art/Painting, Video Editing, Tennis
- What is your favorite thing about UMass Lowell (UML)? My favorite thing about UML is how supportive the community has been so far! Learning my way around campus and how the systems worked was super challenging and to have staff and students who were kind and patient to guide me along the way was both comforting and encouraging to be more social. The Merrimack Market is also the best spot on Campus, especially with their deserts, yum!
- What are your future goals? As of now, my future goal aside from being academically successful is to also be able to enter the Cybersecurity Field once I graduate. There are many roles to be played in Cybersecurity, but I want to be able to gain experiences that’ll open those different opportunities for me and slim down what to hyperfocus on. Something more specific would be to learn how to code a website and use it as an online portfolio for more of my creative works.
- What has having been involved with the RHSA meant to you? Being involved in RHSA is essentially surrounding myself in a positive community where even despite our different experiences and lives, we still share the determination to succeed. Finding your own place and comfort in a new environment where you will need to act more independently can become overwhelming for the first time. It shouldn’t be shamed to not know things as simple as they seem to be and RHSA had people who helped without that condescending judgment.
- Looking back, what advice would you give to yourself in your first year of college? The advice I’d give myself at the start of my first year of college would be to not slack off. If the work gets hard and time-consuming, take a break but get back to it not too long after. If you let the hard tasks marinate too long, you’ll end up racing against time and for some people, it works, but for me, to learn effectively, I should learn with the waves and not get caught up in them, leaving me to be behind.
- What advice would you give fellow students? Don’t be afraid of asking for help from professors and tutors, it will help immensely! Sometimes we worry or have too much pride to go to the office/tutoring hours and ask for help because we don’t want to seem “dumb” or show that we are behind. Truth is when you’re showing initiative in coming to these sessions to actively seek understanding in the course work, that’s all they care about. Making sure you succeed.
- Why did you choose to attend UMass Lowell? I chose to attend UMass Lowell because it was close enough to my home but far enough to give me and my family distance and allow me to live a more independent life. UMass Lowell also helped me financially, since tuition was one of my biggest worries. The final push was how successful Computer Science and general STEM programs the university had were. All those factors considered together pushed me toward choosing UMass Lowell since they aligned with the needs and wants in a college, allowing me to say “I know I can succeed with this school”!
- What does it mean to you to be a first-generation college student? To be a first-generation student in college means that I can move onto bigger heights just as my parents want me to reach. When I succeed and land myself a good career and a solid life, I can look back and think about all the work and struggles my parents faced to make sure they could get me the resources that allowed me to be where I am. Even now, I can look back and still feel as grateful and determined. I want to be able to repay my gratitude to them in the same way they helped me. They’re not materialistic people so I hope to be able to financially support them as they near retirement age, care for them, and give them experiences they haven’t been able to before.
- What inspires you to want to help first-generation students in the RHSA? Seeing and meeting people who are both leaders and peers have inspired me to become someone more initiative. The staff and peer leaders I’ve met showcase confidence but not arrogance, they’re professional without being strict and are incredibly friendly. With my peers, I see their struggles and their strengths, and that encourages me to keep up the pace and improve upon my weaknesses and strong points. I am not the most charismatic or hyped person ever, but I have skills I want to show and a goal I want to meet. And helping first-gen students is a part of that journey for me.