SAN ANTONIO – Maria Napal, 21, will soon be able to call herself a University of Texas at San Antonio graduate.
The graduating senior will be walking the stage at the 2024 Fall Commencement Ceremony tomorrow on UTSA’s main campus.
Originally from Argentina, Napal and her family moved to the United States when she was 3 years old. Her parents made the decision to move for her dad’s job.
“It was hard, especially because the culture and the language, it’s very different,” Napal said.
The family settled in Katy, Texas, where Napal would stay until it was her time to come to San Antonio. After moving, her parents had a goal of everyone in the family becoming a U.S. citizen.
“It was a long process. It was difficult,” said Napal.
When Napal was 16 years old, she was finally able to call herself a U.S. citizen.
“It was a happy moment for everyone to become citizens,” she said. “I always see myself as Argentinean and American, and I guess it was nice to finally be able to make it more official with the citizenship.”
While becoming a citizen, Napal was also beginning to become interested in the field of cybersecurity. She took a class in high school and said her professor is a big reason why she chose to major in the subject.
“My professor would always talk about UTSA, and he would say, ‘Cybersecurity is a great program at UTSA. If you want to learn cybersecurity, go to UTSA,’” said Napal.
Following high school graduation, Napal began taking classes online through UTSA. She did that for a couple of years then decided it was time to attend the university in person.
“I felt like I was missing an aspect of university, and I didn’t want to lose that near the end of my degree,” Napal said.
After coming to be in-person for school, Napal joined the Women in Cybersecurity Club on campus. There, she was able to work in the field she loved and with other women interested in getting a job in it.
“It happens a lot, in cybersecurity, computer science, those type of clubs. It’s very male dominated. It can get a bit overwhelming to have to attend a club. It just helped create like a safe, more comfortable space to interact,” said Napal.
UTSA will host their graduation ceremonies on Dec. 14. Napal will walk the stage and has a couple of months before her next chapter starts.
“I will be working at Valero as a business analyst,” Napal said.
She starts her new job in February.