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Jose Perez starts at ����AV this fall, majoring in and participating in the Honors College. But the Falls Church, Virginia native feels like he’s already a student, in a way.

“I’m familiar with so many of the faculty at this point because I participated in the —I’ve been coming here for summer events since as early as 8th grade,” he said. “I’ve already formed a sense of community here. And as an International Baccalaureate student, I had college-level work for two years and so have decent academic preparation.”

He describes himself as a “STEM kid from the get-go,” and participated in cybersecurity-related extracurriculars in high school. “For me, it’s the best cross between raw engineering and computer science.” Being part of Meridian High School’s Cyber Patriots team exposed him to the challenges and opportunities in computer science.

He burnished his high school resume with a lot of extracurriculars: He was the lead engineer on a Science Olympiad team, participated in George Mason’s , volunteered for Habitat for Humanity, and was a four-year participant in the urban farm project at his school.

Perez is the child of immigrants from the Philippines—both his parents are nurses—and he recognizes that opportunities presented here at George Mason will allow him a great path toward upward mobility that he might not have at other institutions, especially being able to save money while living at home. “I knew I would be happy here and get what I need, especially because I feel like I've already formed a sense of community here.”

He’s ready and excited for what new changes are in place. “I’m aware of the new amount of freedom and responsibility I’ll have as a college student. I’ll just be prepared to take that on. I’m trying to push myself to do a lot this first semester and I’m part of the and will be going to Korea in my second semester. It will be a great way to throw myself in there.”