Hello! My name's Emilio, I'm a third year student at Revelle College at UCSD and my major is in Ecology, Evolution and Behavioral Sciences. I was a massive animal geek growing up so now I'm working to do something in marine conservation or animal husbandry. In my free time, I love drawing, fishing, volunteering at Birch Aquarium, and watching movies. Ive really enjoyed my time at UCSD, I know the giant campus like the back of my hand at this point, as well as all of the colleges pros and cons.

Hometown

Spring Valley, CA, United States. Part of San Diego county.

Major(s)

Ecology, Evolution, and Behavioral Sciences

Minor(s)

N​/​A

Clubs, organizations & involvement

Birch Aquarium at Scripps as a guest services volunteer, The Living Coast Nature Center as a guest services volunteer, Freshmen onboarding at Steele Canyon High School as a Cougar Crew Leader, AVID Tutor at Monte Vista High School

Describe your college experience

The first quarter at UCSD hit me like a truck, I was not anticipating how fast it all moves and how difficult the material is, but by 3rd quarter, I found a sort of groove. I came to this college with one friend from high school, and since then I have made many more good friends that I see every day I'm on campus. juggling having a job with schooling was hard for me at first, but I learned to manage.

Tip for future students

The social aspect isn't as bad as people say, most people on campus are super kind and more than willing to talk to you. Commuting is difficult from Spring valley, taking the trolley is time consuming and not the best. Also be prepared to walk or invest in a scooter. But most of all, college is nothing like high school, especially on a quarter system, you need to actually apply yourself if you want to succeed, and although there are plenty of ways to get help, it satrts with yourself.

Favorite class

I've only done GEs so far, but one of them was an ecology and evolution course (BILD 3), and I loved every second of it.

Career goals

There's so much I can do out of college with my degree, as long as I'm working with wildlife, either captive wildlife or marine animal conservation, then I will be happy. Maybe a position with Scripps Institute of Oceanography, the Fish and Game Administration, the Port of San Diego, The San Diego Zoo, The San Diego Natural History Museum, etc.

Ideal way to spend a free night

If I had a night to myself and I'm not studying, I usually spend it drawing, watching a movie, reading, or playing some video games if I'm motivated.

High school or secondary school

Steele Canyon High School, Spring Valley, CA