Cohort Stories: Meet Junior
vol. 4, no. 39 — guest post by Junior Correia
I grew up in an underdeveloped country that utilized technology but never in a complex or innovative manner. Nonetheless my introduction to technology started very early. I remember my uncle and I taking trips to junk yards at a young age in order to look for parts from other devices in order to create radios. My curiosity for technology developed in my home country despite the fact that there wasn’t much tech influence around. After I moved to America, the second person that became of most influence to me was my cousin Joseph who studied computer science. I was always with Joseph whenever he was on his computer, and I was eager and devoted to always learn from my cousin.
Once I understood technology, I could not stop even if wanted to. My parents came home one day and found me in the living room taking apart our home computer and the first thing that they said after being alarmed was “our kid is either a genius or we have to buy another computer.” While, my parents were preventing themselves from having a heart attack, I was begging my parents to bring me to the store to buy new computer parts in order to make the PC better. Lucky, my parents realized the passion that I had and decided to support me which allowed me to get parts for the PC and I was able to have everything functioning and improved. As a child, I did not see this a milestone but I can proudly say that this event was a milestone that made me decide that I wanted to have a career in the IT Field. Overall, this is what excites and motivates me about the tech industry. The simple idea of creating and recreating is so unique.
I see the tech industry as a community because people are able to collaborate, develop and help each other. What motivates me the most is the idea of constantly having to be self-taught, to relearn and to keep learning.
I am motivated by the fact that the IT field is everlasting and a growing industry. My arrival at Hack.Diversity is only possible because of the people around me. Whether it be my parents, my uncle or my cousin, they all played a significant role in my life. As a first-generation college student there are several obstacles that I had to overcome in order to reach this checkpoint. Whether it was dealing with financial issues, time management or mental health. It took me way too long to realize that I need help in order to go further, which is the most important lesson through my moments of struggle. Ever since high school, my dream job has been to be a system administrator and I envision that my time with Hack.Diversity will be filled with guidance in order to prepare for me for my professional career in that role.
