Brag Sheet Questions

Monica Desiree Hernandez Cubias

July 7, 1997
1019 W. St. Kateri Dr.
hernandez.monicad@gmail.com
I am on free lunch
Will be a first generation college student
I am an US citizen
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Internships: Maricopa Integrated Health System, U of A Mentorship
1. Potential areas of study in college:
Currently, I am looking to the majors of biology or public health because the career I wish to get into later in
life is Epidemiology, or the branch in government that looks over incidence, distribution and possible
containment of diseases and related factors of health. Other than becoming a Epidemiologist I would also like to
become a doctor, as of right now Ive been looking into being a pediatric doctor. Ive always been fascinated
with how scientists study diseases, predict a possible cure as well as handle an outbreak while they help those
that are already infected by the disease. Its been interesting and while it is in a lab, thats fine because I enjoy
working in labs. Aside from that, becoming a pediatrician would be great because Ive already have experience
working with children at Maricopa Integrated Health System, in their Child Life department and taking care of
children has been a wonderful experience. Both however are under the undergraduate pre-medicine area. I am
really certain that I would like to go into these majors because I like all three, depending on the career I have
available, will be the choice I make later in life.
2. List all schools
My first school choice was University of Southern California, a public school in California that would have
great programs in the undergraduate classes that would help me through to my own career choice of becoming
an Epidemiologist. The classes while the size would be big for general classes, USC has small head start
programs that would help reach my goal of becoming an Epidemiologist while working alongside others who
share my interest as well as close connections with my professor. Academically, classes are fantastic but campus
life is great as well with various clubs that I would like to join, most being related to medicine. This has been
my target school and until I can get aid from FAFSA I will continue to aim for this school.
My second choice was University of Arizona. This in state school is known to be a great school for those
wishing to pursue any career in the medical field and also has programs like that of USC for those who want a
head start in any career. The professors spend lots of time individually so connections with professors are great
as well. This is my safety school if I cannot afford to get into USC. I like the academic classes offered at U of A
as well as the campus life seeing as it is close to town and it would bring in a different perspective, one I
havent seen before.
My third choice was Arizona State University. ASU also has my two majors that I would like to take so I am
also fine with going to ASU if I cannot financially support myself at U of A. This would be possible because I
would be able to have a mode of transportation to my classes where as U of A is difficult financially.
3. Describe your family.
a. My mother, Wendy Cubias, and my step-father, Walter Arellano are who I am living with. I am an only child
so I would be the first generation to go to college.

b. Discuss your father: profession (s), where attended college, degrees earned. (Level of education.)
My father works as a welder in a company called Argus. He attended school while in Guatemala and went to
college to receive his associates degree. Since coming to Phoenix he has yet to be able to finish his schooling to
receive a bachelors degree.
c. Discuss your mother: profession(s), where attended college, degrees earned. (Level of education.)
My mother works at Quick and Confidential, a scanning and processing office in downtown. She graduated
high school in California but she had only a few years of college and did not graduate.
d. How are you like and different from each of your parents? How have each of your parents influenced
you? What qualities of theirs do you admire?
I am very much like my father; we both work hard to reach the end goal but are always willing to help others in
any way possible. Like with my mother; we are fighters, we fight for what we want to achieve our goals and
always take more tasks than can handle. We do it because we like helping people when they need a break or
when they cannot seem to go on; we pick them right back up.
e. Has your family situation changed since you started high school? If so, explain.
Right now the biggest income source has been my father since he makes around $50,000 a year. However we
dont necessarily see that money since a lot of it goes right back into his work to buy materials or machines to
create new jobs and we see maybe $16,000-$18,000 a year. Its because of the amount of jobs he makes in a
year that the income is high but again the money goes to the materials anyways. My mom still has a stable job
earning a slightly lower income but we can always count on their being money enough for our bills. The only
difference between now and back then was that my mother got her citizen ship while my dad is undocumented,
which is how he has little income for the family in comparison to what he could gain.
f. Describe your ethnic/cultural background and any languages that you speak at home. If you feel that your
cultural identity has enriched your life, tell me about it.
I speak English, Spanish and I am currently taking Mandarin Chinese. I am actually Salvadorian, a small
country underneath Guatemala which is underneath Mexico. I was born here so I understand that being a US
citizen is a not something to take for granted, especially when looking for jobs or colleges. My cultural has
taught me that while families struggle to make amends, family will always be there to support each other and
thats what I wish to do in return from college. I want to assist not only my family but others who need financial
aid much like those who cannot afford to college.
4. Describe yourself.
a. What three adjectives would a teacher use to describe you?
Introverted, Responsible, Dedicated Ms. Smith
b. What three adjectives would your parents use to describe you?
Father:
c. Give me a specific example/story of how you exemplify one (or more) of these qualities.
I know I am introverted, everyone knows that and Im not ashamed of being utterly quiet. Being quiet is
something that I enjoy, being alone helps me focus on my work instead of becoming distracted and putting of
work for a while. Another thing is being responsible. Since I am introverted and like being alone, I know Im
responsible to set my work into what needs to be done and what could be done later so I dont either overwork
myself and stress out or put off everything and become stress from the piled work.

5. Why did you choose Bio?

I choose Bio because I have always known I wanted to go into the medical pathway and Bioscience offers great
support to those who want to move into the medical pathway. I didnt at the time know I wanted to become an
Epidemiologist, I originally thought I was going to become a nurse but through the classes, my interest changed
as the classes moved from one topic to the next, eventually hitting on epidemics. I was quiet coming into bio
and I still am but I am more opinionated than before and when I want to say something I will. Bio has taught me
how to think critically and worked on becoming a public speaker. I still wont speak during classes but when I
am called on I can answer confidently instead of becoming nervous and stuttering like I used to before coming
to bio.
6. Which school subjects do you like the best?
I really like sophomore year biology and chemistry and junior years anatomy, physiology and epidemiology. I
really enjoyed those because not only did it I learn new topics; I became interested in something that I could
become passionate about to pursue in a career.
7. Write about one BioScience class that has changed your thinking and/or impacted you in a significant way.
Explain.
The class that changed my way of thinking has been junior year Humanities because of the challenging
curriculum for it. Right of the bat I was challenged in every way possible from history to future plannings,
especially in the deliveries. Sometimes we wrote essays and others we did a creative piece that was enjoyable to
work on. The stress of the class was always present because there was always something else to do; there was
never a calm break in between classes or breaks. While it was hard I enjoy the challenge because it introduced
me to different events in history that were really interesting to learn about.
8. Describe your school-based extracurricular activities.
a. Tell me about your athletic, artistic, student government, club or other extracurricular involvements.
I used to play sports in middle school, basketball and baseball and was either point guard or left center field and
enjoy those positions because I can help bring the ball back to the start or help in defending the net while being
able to steal it away from the other team. It was always a rush when I held the ball, I had the choice that would
either help our team or potential hurt our team and figuring out what play to do when was challenging,
something that I enjoyed. At bio I was a part of the Chinese Yoyo club and team, be a Leader and Unicef. Each
brings in a different aspect of me and it was fun exploring a Chinese cultural sport.
b. Do you intend to continue with a sport or activity in college?
If I could I would love to continue the clubs I am currently in as well as maybe seeing if I could play basketball
again, maybe not on an official team but for fun. Clubs are always a great way to stay active on campus and I
would like to be a part of clubs that relate back to medicine or my own interest like art or writing.
c. What have you learned about yourself as a result of your activities?
Ive learned that I have to make my own path, I cannot have others dictate what I should do and when coming
to bio I had multiple options I choose what I was interested in and not what others thought I should be in. Ive
moved from being shy to being a quiet but still opinionated girl I will speak if I have to.
9. What were your exhibitions of learning about sophomore and junior year?
During my sophomore year my 7 step challenge was focused on the Motorola Superfund site and creating an
awareness surrounding the site.
My junior year exhibition of learning was surrounding the mental health issues in teens, specifically targeting
you teens with depression and suicide. My group throughout the whole year went around collecting survey data
to prove that this was an ongoing problem at our school and was focused on joining Teen Lifelife to receive
training that would help us help other students. Weve since then continued with the project, moving onto
psychological health in young women for our senior project.

10. Describe your involvement in the community of Phoenix, and beyond.

a. What volunteer work have you done? Tell exactly what the task involved.
Ive volunteered at St. Josephs Hospital and Maricopa Hospital for two years now. While St. Joseph is only
during the summer, Ive have an ongoing volunteer work with Maricopa Integrated Health System since the end
of June. For St. Joseph, I was a volunteer at a help desk, escorting people to and from locations within the
hospital if they were lost or if they were unable to move around by themselves. For Maricopa, during the
summer I volunteered at both Child Life and Transportation. Transportation is a department that is called on
when patients need to move from one room to the next and can only be moved by their beds. I used to be in that
but when school started I decided to stay with Child Life. Child Life is a friendly department that focuses on
educating children from their time in the rooms and filling their memories with happy, enjoyable experience
instead of being stuck in a room. Interacting with patients and their parents is a new experience, one where I
learned I liked working with children.
11. Do you have a passion for something outside of academics? Is there one thing that is most important
to you? Explain. Its OK if you dont have a passion for something!
Ive always had a passion for reading and writing. Literacy has always been my favorite subject and writing has
always been a passion of me, writing short narrative about anyone or anything that comes into mind. I spend
hours reading books or writing stories that I hope to one day be able to publish. Although redundant, I also do
enjoy music; while I myself cannot play I enjoy listening to others play, understanding the lyrics of the song as
well as the instruments behind them, an appreciation to the work of the song.
12. How do you spend your free time? Tell me about your hobbies and interests other than school or
sports.
I mainly spend my time alone reading all sorts of books. When Im not I like to mess around on the computer
with music I already have and create one big mix of favorite songs or ones I think would be a great addition to
another song. I really enjoy going to the movies with my friends and if not then watching TV shows.
13. What have you done for the past three summers? Be specific.
For the past two summers Ive volunteered at St. Joseph and Maricopa almost filling my weekdays. Along with
that Ive participated in Dragon Academy at school as well as participated in the college and career readiness
workshop at school.
14. From your perspective now as a senior, what have you learned about yourself since you began high
school that has surprised or pleased you? Describe what you have gained from your BioScience
education. How are you different from that first day freshman year?
Most will say I am not different than the first day of school but I beg to differ. I was completely shy my first few
days of Freshmen year, I would not say anything until I started opening myself up to others. Since then I have
come a long way in my participation. As the years progressed and I first started volunteering at St. Josephs
Hospital, because of the constant personal interaction with patients and visitors Ive had to learn to raise my
own confidence and speak loud and clearly. When I returned back to school some teachers noticed an
improvement in my speaking skills but I would still not speak, unless asked too. Ive also learned how to
become more organize in work and to time myself, time management is always the key in any
given situation which is hope I learned not to stress out about work.