Student Stories

Fausto Morales '12

Key Largo, FL
Major: Civil and Environmental Engineering

I was born in Cuba but grew up in Key Largo, Florida. My dad is a preacher and my mom is a schoolteacher. I lived by myself during my high school years because my parents and siblings moved to Key West when my dad became a preacher there. The high school in Key West didn't have as many opportunities as my high school in Key Largo, so I stayed behind.

I have had an acute interest in computers and the art of solving problems with them for as long as I can remember. In elementary school, I designed a web site for my fifth grade class. In middle school, I made a bet with a teacher that I could get into the school's grading system (with her supervision, although in hindsight, the whole thing was a bad idea). In high school, my marching band played really lame stand tunes (the songs the band plays when they're not on the field), so I went home and used an open source music notation program to write new tunes that incorporated melodies from popular music people were familiar with.

When it came time to apply for college, I assumed that I would go to one of the state schools. Sitting in class one day, however, I decided I'd take a shot at something a little bigger. I'd known about MIT for as long as I can remember and knew it as the mecca for computer geeks. Everyone told me it'd be a long shot, but I had nothing to lose and everything to gain, so I went ahead and applied. By the time I finished my application, I had fallen in love with the school. When I got accepted in December, I was shocked.

I started getting cold feet when 'the numbers" started to roll in and it became obvious just how much my dreams were going to cost me. However, when my financial aid letter came in and I found out that MIT and its generous donors would cover the vast majority of my costs, my decision was made.

I would not have been able to attend MIT if it weren't for financial aid. Furthermore, knowing that someone out there (for me, Steve Bechtel and the Bechtel Corporation) is being so generous as to help pay for my education is one more reason for me to stay focused and take advantage of all that MIT has to offer me.

 

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