Alumni share their experiences in the real world

Recently, three graduates discussed their lives and careers after graduation. Each pursued a different degree, and now they are teachers at different schools.Roberto Gonzalez, 24, started college in fall 2001. He majored in business administration and graduated in May 2006.”I felt confident and secure after graduation because I now had a paper that said I have some kind of knowledge,” Gonzalez said.However, after graduation, Gonzalez did not get the job he wanted.”There are not a lot of jobs in business which pay a decent salary to someone who holds a bachelor’s degree in Laredo,” Gonzalez said. “Many businesses require experience to start you off with a good salary.”Married for over a year and a half, Gonzalez works for UISD as a math teacher at Lamar Bruni Vergara Middle School.Even though he did not study to be a teacher, he claims TAMIU helped him prepare for a career in education.”TAMIU helped me grow as an intellectual person,” Gonzalez said.Diana Gonzalez, 27, graduated in the summer of 2007. She had pursued a double major and holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Interdisciplinary studies, including English, Language Arts, Reading, and Social Studies.Gonzalez works as a sixth grade social studies teacher at Washington Middle School.”I felt accomplished, relieved, and settled after graduation because as a single mother, now I can give my son the kind of life I couldn’t give him before,” Gonzalez said. “I can [provide] for him, and I don’t need help from anyone.”Gonzalez started college at the age of 21. She attended Laredo Community College and San Antonio College before transferring to TAMIU.”My first year in college I enrolled in two to three classes a semester,” Gonzalez said. “I ended up dropping some classes.”When her son was born in 2003, she took time off from college. By 2004, she returned as a full-time student.”When I went back, TAMIU helped me a lot because they used to have a daycare,” Gonzalez said.As a teacher, she dislikes the lesson plans and the paperwork, but she loves her students.”I like being able to help and make a difference,” Gonzalez said. “When I notice my students learning, it feels cool.”Gonzalez plans to return to TAMIU this summer to pursue a Master’s in Interdisciplinary Studies. The advice she gives current TAMIU students is to stay in college, don’t give up, and always try your best.”You are never going to have an experience like college,” she said.Javier Vasquez, 24, graduated in May 2007. He studied history with a minor in geography.Vasquez started college in August 2001 and studied for six years. He attended Laredo Community College for two and a half years and finished his studies at TAMIU. “It just felt like I was never going to finish college,” Vasquez said. “There were times when I thought I could not do the work, especially research papers.”Vasquez is now a social studies teacher at Martin High School. Although Vasquez says TAMIU prepared him for his current job, he believes he obtained his most relevant experience from his previous jobs in management.”My management jobs gave me experience dealing with people in tough situations, which I think helped me to be a teacher and deal with the everyday high expectations of being a teacher,” Vasquez said.Vasquez is currently pursuing a Master’s in Education Administration.”Hopefully, I will succeed in completing it so I may become a school administrator,” Vasquez said.