‘Welcome to the land of dreams.’ How three Miami Dade College students made it to MIT
Ana Camba Gomes, Fabiana González Zambrano and Romina Cano Velasquez would spend 14 hours a day going to class, labs and studying together, often dissecting linear algebra problems in the early-morning hours. They woke up at 5 in the morning to get to campus by 5:40, scrambling to review notes before physics class began at 6. The three classmates — one a mechanical engineering major, and the other two majoring in computer engineering — took twice as many credits as the average Miami Dade College student. They wrestled with a fifth-dimensional object in linear algebra, with Velasquez protesting: “Humans can only see three dimensions!” The arduous workload paid off for the three, two of whom are from Venezuela and one who is from Peru. They all arrived in South Florida less than five years ago and graduated with highest honors and distinction in May from the dual language program at the Honors College at Miami Dade College.
