Vidal Saenz

Background

About Vidal Saenz

My name is Vidal Saenz and I am from McAllen TX and am currently studying for a B.S. in Bioengineering at Rice University in Houston, TX. My recent roles as Orientation Week coordinator and Internal Vice President for McMurtry College, my residential college at Rice, have provided me lots of experience in leadership roles that require communication and collaboration with a wide variety of people that includes students, parents, Rice faculty and staff, and local businesses to name a few. This past summer I participated in a research fellowship program at Rice with Szablowski lab in which I learned a wide variety of different technical skills including wet lab techniques, immunostaining, brain tissue imaging with fluorescent microscope, image analysis, in vivo procedures, and many others. This experience also taught me professional skills like poster presenting, interpreting academic journals, working with different lab members, and fostering a collaborative and inclusive work environment. I was offered an opportunity to continue with the lab which I accepted and have continued to work in as of now. My ultimate goal is to make healthcare more affordable and inclusive by optimizing and innovating current technologies in use today. I have seen and experienced first hand the flaws of American Healthcare coming from a border town with a high poverty rate and as such I am driven to make change in a way that allows me to pursue what I enjoy.