 This December will be two years of graduating with my MSc! Crap, I feel old. I've been wanting to write this kind of post for a while, but was afraid that I would get some backlash for not expressing a "oh my gosh, graduate school was the best" mentality. Looking back, there are a few of the things I wish I knew before I started on one of the hardest adventures of my life. I'm sharing them here in hopes that if someone is wondering whether or not to take the plunge, they fully know what they are getting into.
The one thing I hate about moving is answering all the questions from the new people surrounding you. “What’s your name?” “Where do you live?” “Where are you from?” “No, where are you really from?”
That last question always gets me because my answer of “x” never suffices. See, most people think I'm white. Especially with a name like “Melissa,” I have been able to "pass" as white all my life. I am not brown enough to be an actual Mexican or Puerto Rican, apparently. I get “You sound too white to be Latina” or “You talk just like a white girl would!” Telling someone these things, as well as “You don’t look Hispanic” is not a compliment. And it isn’t just non-Latinx people telling me this... the racial/cultural dismissal comes from both non-Latinxs and Latinxs alike. |
Hi! I'm Melissa, an Australian-based Latina science educator, podcaster, and freelance writer. I spend a lot more time on Instagram and Twitter, but blogging is my first love. Thanks for stopping by — I hope you stay a while.
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November 2022
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