Those who know say that every dream can be achieved, and today, 28-year-old Alejandra López Holguín from Durango is making giant strides to reach her goal: becoming an astronomer and immediately sharing her knowledge, experience and anecdotes.
Born in Villa Unión, Poanas, Durango, Alejandra has already broken all stigmas and has crossed borders in search of what she discovered is her passion: astronomy. “It’s not like I said when I was a child that I wanted to be an astronomer, it was a long process,” she says, and when she was in high school, she only knew that she liked math and challenges, so she had to find something that combined both things.
“…so I said ‘ok, I want to study a career that has a lot of math and is difficult’, that was my idea,” and so fate led her to the Technological Institute of Durango (ITD), where she studied Chemical Engineering, after analyzing which was the most difficult career, just what she had in mind.
The career lasts four and a half years, and during the journey she realized that her passion for astronomy arose; this led her to inform herself and learn in a self-taught way, “I started studying, looking for how stars are formed, that’s when all my curiosity came out.”
It was not until the last year of her career, when she was asked to do professional internships, that she sent emails and applications to various places, but one of them was the Astronomy Institute of the UNAM, where she was accepted, and there began her path in search of being an astronomer.
“I realized that I could pursue a career in astrophysics, or astronomy, because there were master’s degrees in astrophysics, doctorates. When I was a child I used to say I wanted something difficult and with mathematics, but it was not until that moment that I realized: ‘I want to be a scientist. ’”
She said that when a person wants to be a scientist there is a process, it starts with a degree, a master’s degree, a doctorate, maybe another and another; by that time Alejandra was already on the next step, she now had to go for the doctorate, so she applied to various universities.
She was accepted in three, the UNAM, the University of New Mexico in the United States, and the University of Wisconsin, she accepted the latter, where she is currently continuing her training.
“I am now studying in the area of astrochemistry, studying the formation of molecules in space, prebiotic molecules, that is, those that are important for the origin of life.”
In the future she sees herself as a professor and researcher at a prestigious university, always with the intention of sharing and disseminating her knowledge.
Challenges in Durango and Mexico
She considered that in Durango the main challenge for a female scientist is that there are no places, there are few research centers, and these are for few areas of science.
At the national level, there are more places, but also greater competitiveness, not only with other Mexican profiles, but with the whole world, and it is that in these spaces they summon locals and foreigners.
Her inspiration
The young woman from Durango, who has dedicated herself to studying and learning a lot, has at least three people who are her source of inspiration, the first of them is Julieta Fierro, whom she refers to as a great popularizer, but also Carl Sagan, an astronomer and astrophysicist who has already passed away, and Neil deGrasse Tyson.
“Those who have made me passionate and brought me into the world of science are scientists who, despite the fact that science is very abstract and complex to explain, have taken that knowledge and explained it in a more edible way. They inspire me because I also aspire to be a scientific communicator, I want to share science with everyone.”
Where does Alejandra see herself in the future?
For López Holguín, her dream job would be in Mexico, with its people, and where there is a lot to do, learn about and pass on to other people interested in this. “That is the plan, to go and learn there to bring everything and make the country grow,” however, she acknowledged that sometimes this is about going where the opportunities are.
“I would like to be at the UNAM Astronomy Institute, I would like to make my professional life there.”
Alejandra finally sent a message to young people who may want to follow her path, as she assured that to achieve any dream, discipline and persistence will be the great allies. If you try once and don’t succeed, try again, again and again, she added.
“Take action, prepare yourself, see where there are opportunities, see what you need to be able to do your master’s or doctorate. Start studying, the point is that not everything is dreams and desires, but what you are doing about it to achieve what you want.”
What message do you send to the 10-year-old Alejandra, and to the Alejandra of the future?
To the 10-year-old girl, I would say that “she sets her own limits, that if she wants to achieve something, it is up to her, and not to other people. Don’t listen to negative comments that will tell you that you can’t.”
Meanwhile, he also sent an emotional message to the future mother: “I would tell her that she achieved it, that she should feel proud of the entire journey, it is not just the goal, it is the path taken.”
Source: elsoldedurango
