Hi, my name is Jasmine Fortez, and I’m a third-year Computer Science major at UC Santa Cruz. I studied abroad in Singapore through the UCEAP Global Internship Program, where I interned as a mobile developer and received the UCEAP Internship Award for my work.
Studying abroad as a low-income, Filipina, first-generation student in STEM was deeply affirming. It was empowering to represent my background in a global tech environment, working alongside professionals from across Southeast Asia. Returning to the region after living in the U.S. for many years gave me a broader and more nuanced understanding of what it means to be Asian. I realized how much culture, class, and history shape different Asian identities, and how being Asian doesn’t look or feel the same everywhere.
One challenge I faced was navigating the cultural dissonance between familiarity and difference. As someone who grew up in the Philippines, parts of Singapore felt comforting, like seeing familiar food or hearing Tagalog on the train. At the same time, I had to adapt to a new professional environment, adjust to Singapore’s fast-paced work culture, and find my place in a country that felt both regionally close to home and culturally distinct. What grounded me was connecting with other international students, journaling through moments of doubt, and reminding myself that even when I felt out of place, I still belonged.
My time in Singapore strengthened not only my technical skills but also my confidence in being my full self in unfamiliar places. I developed a cross-platform handyman app using React Native, applied DevOps practices, and debugged across different operating systems–skills I had never used before but learned along the way. Receiving the UCEAP Internship Award affirmed that my contributions mattered. More importantly, the experience reminded me that my perspective, shaped by growing up in the Philippines, navigating higher education in the United States, and dreaming globally, has real value.
Building on that momentum, I will be studying abroad again this fall at Seoul National University in South Korea. I chose SNU for its innovative computer science curriculum and the chance to live in one of the world’s most tech-forward cities. I am excited to take classes like UI Design Programming and to connect with student developer communities like WaffleStudio and UPnL. Just as Singapore helped me reconnect with and rethink my Southeast Asia identity, I’m looking forward to how life in South Korea will challenge and shape me academically, culturally, and personally.