About me

Hello everyone! My name is Isabela Sanchez Taipe, I’m currently 22 years old and studying at Wellesley College.

I come from Lima, the capital of Peru; specifically, from the Rimac, a district very well known for its history, music, and food. I was raised in a house led by women whose first language is Quechua (a Peruvian native language), so a combination of Quechua and Spanish represented my daily conversation at home.

Spring 2023, presenting my original writing in Quechua, English and Spanish at the Rulhman Conference in Wellesley College.

Regarding my high school, I could find a gate to secondary education thanks to Peru Champs. Peru Champs is a non-profit association supported by the Intercorp Group and led by Alberto De Cárdenas that identifies low-income school students with academic, artistic, and sports talent to study in one of the Innova Schools, a group of high schools across Peru.

My high school experience was very interesting and enriching, every single thing I went through made me the person I am today. I love Innova Schools because their curriculum is not solely focused on academics but also on the reinforcement of soft skills. For example, there’s a Leadership Academy that trains you in oratory, self-esteem, and problem-solving skills. When I started high school, I was not a super-confident student; however, this program helped me to recognize my worth and taught me that leadership comes in different ways and shapes.

Fall 2024, represented Wellesley College in a US Senate Simulation as 2024 Civic Action Lab Team Leader

Why did I decide to study abroad?

When I graduated high school, I was committed to pursuing superior studies and going to university. Even though that was my dream, I had to start working to help my family's economy while partly preparing to apply to public universities in my country. Nevertheless, due to partial and weak preparation because of work, my performance in the admission exams was low, and I didn’t get a place in the very competitive Peruvian public colleges. I applied to other universities and scholarships; however, I didn’t get any of them.

Honestly, I didn’t even think of studying in another country because just thinking about it felt expensive. If education in Peru was expensive, I couldn’t imagine education in universities abroad with a different currency. Anyway, never say never, right?

At that time, I was also studying English in a language institute with a partial scholarship to boost my chances of getting a better job. While I was leaving the center, I saw a young lady giving a presentation about the US Consulate's services for students interested in studying abroad. I decided to stay during the whole presentation, admiring everything that made up the US application process. When asking the young lady the prices for the services, I realized I couldn’t afford them, and for a little moment, hope disappeared again; however, then she mentioned the Opportunity Funds program, a program I could apply to get free counseling and preparation to study in the US.

That woman kindly took my email address promising she would let me know when the Opportunity Funds program application opened. I gave her a cupcake to say thank you.

That little moment changed my life. If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have discovered Education USA or applied to US colleges.

My main inspiration was my grandmother, my mom, and my aunts. They couldn’t afford college, but I know that they would have taken a great advantage if they could have attended a higher education institution. That’s why I wanted to attend, to explore my whole potential and help my family back in the future.

Summer 2023, first summer in the US, working as an Assistant Researcher at MIT App Inventor in MIT CSAIL.

My experience applying to the US

In 2020, I got into Education USA and applied to 12 universities in the United States. However, most of them rejected me, and I got waitlisted by Barnard, Wellesley, and Columbia. After that, I kept working to raise enough money so my sister could afford a Peruvian university when she graduated from high school and not go through the same stress and disappointment as I did. I thought that my life would look like that until I somehow managed to study in Peru; nevertheless, my mom convinced me otherwise. “Why don’t you try a second time?” “You know the process and already have the exams” “It’s not impossible” and “You don’t want to live with a what if in mind” were the words that motivated me to return to the race.

She was right. I didn’t want to live thinking about what could have been if I had dared to apply once more. Therefore, I contacted friends who accompanied me in the Education USA process and had gotten into university, as well as my past mentors and friends who were trying again. Building that community of shared dreams and help was a huge aid to my application in 2021. That year I only applied to two colleges and got into Wellesley College!

Summer 2023, first 4th of July with Harvard and Wellesley friends.

Stats and extracurriculars

I applied with a GPA of 16.75 out of 20, one of the highest in my class and I applied test-optional, so I didn’t take the SAT. Regarding my extracurricular activities, I think that I did most of them while in school, just because I enjoyed them and not solely to fill out a space in the Common App. My first activity was Laboratoria, an all-women programming bootcamp I did during the pandemic, where I developed projects and learned more about computer science. Secondly, I belonged to the choir and Charango team of Sinfonia por el Perú, a non-profit organization of social transformation through the collective teaching of music. This was a very meaningful activity for me since music is an essential part of my life. Finally, my third activity was Peru’s Ministery of Culture Voluntarios del Bicentenario Program, a community service program where I was able to tutor public school Peruvian students in STEM skills like programming.

Spring 2024, Spring concert with my a capella MIT Wellesley Toons.

Essays

My personal statement was about my first contact with technology through internet booths and how this experience exemplified the lack of technology resources among the poorest parts of my country. Then, I focused on narrating how technology helped me to learn English, improve my readiness, and study for school exams; I described technology as a key tool for my intellectual development. Finally, I wrote about how my family, Quechua women, taught me that despite gender, native language, learning ability, or digital literacy I should design and develop accessible and diverse technology for everyone.

Regarding Wellesley's supplemental essays, the prompt asked me to write about my favorite things in the school. Therefore, I wrote about my excitement to participate in the Latinx culture show since I love singing Peruvian music and my desire to work as a tech intern at the Knapp Center for Media and Technology. I connected these two things to my passions and my knowledge, so I could not only learn but also contribute at college.

Summer 2024, last day as a researcher at Yonsei University Digital Media Lab in Seoul, South Korea

I know that Wellesley is the right place for me. I feel that I’m my best version when I’m surrounded by women and siblings with diverse identities. Every day I learn something new and keep discovering things about myself and technology. Thank you so much for taking the time of reading my story!