ABOUT ME

My name is Yanisleidy Gonzalez and I am a recent graduate from the University of Florida. In May of 2018, I graduated Cum Laude in International Studies with a focus on Europe. I also received two minors, one in Italian Studies and the other in Leadership. Throughout my time at the University of Florida, I completed the International Scholars Program and the Peace Corps Prep Program. I was lucky enough to spend the summer of 2016 studying abroad in Rome, Italy which truly changed my life academically and personally. Studying abroad not only fulfilled one of my passions in life but it also gave me confidence to pursue my future career path upon graduating.

I was born in Havana, Cuba and immigrated to the United States with my family when I was only one year old. I grew up in Tampa, Florida almost my entire life and decided to pursue my education by moving two hours away from home to the University of Florida. I was blessed to receive a full-ride scholarship to my dream school since I was a first-generation, low-income student. Thanks to my scholarship, I was able to travel and study abroad after finishing up my sophomore year, something that I never did growing up. In addition to my two native languages, English and Spanish, I was able to learn Italian during my first two years of college and practice it when I studied abroad in Italy. Even after my trip, I continued taking Italian courses to become fluent in a language I truly came to love.

Studying International Studies at the University of Florida has opened many doors in my life and has allowed me to pursue passions I didn’t even know existed when I started college. My college career has allowed me to go into a career in the nonprofit field. On September 11th, 2018 I will be serving as a Peace Corps Agriculture Volunteer in Paraguay for two years. After service, I am planning to attend graduate school at UF to receive my masters. My ultimate goal is to work for a nonprofit in Washington, DC.