A local Austin student has officially entered the stratosphere of elite academic achievers after being chosen to participate in a highly competitive NASA program. Juan Manuel Monsivais-Peña, studying at Austin Community College District (ACC), was selected by NASA for its Community College Aerospace Scholars (NCAS) mission, an opportunity that drew thousands of hopeful applicants from across the nation.
Against considerable odds, Monsivais-Peña managed to successfully stand out and secure his spot on the team. "I was surprised that I was given an offer to join. I didn’t think I would qualify when I found the opportunity, but I submitted my application. When I was told I was selected, I realized that, regardless of doubting my skills and myself, pushing myself is the way to go," he told ACC Newsroom.
The NCAS program is designed to provide community college students in STEM fields with real-world NASA experience to support and encourage their continuation in higher education and eventual entry into aerospace careers. Monsivais-Peña, who is on track to finish his General Studies degree this spring and aims to complete a second degree in Biology by the end of the year, is now considering a transfer to the University of Texas at Austin to pursue Astrobiology.
Throughout the program, Monsivais-Peña completed three missions that mightily helped build his skills and professional outlook. "Every step of the way taught you something you could apply to the next mission. Mission 1 taught us how to research and condense our information. Mission 2, we were assigned into teams and worked only for a week with no prior introductions, straight into teamwork and research. In Mission 3, we worked with an assigned team for two weeks online to do research for a drone proposal. We then went onsite at Ames Research Center," he explained in the ACC Newsroom interview.
Aspiring for an internship and eventually a position at NASA, Monsivais-Peña views his experience as more than just career development - it's a chance to see how NASA operates from the inside. "This opportunity shows people how NASA works. You get to learn about the experiences and the journey. I feel that we put NASA workers in this place — they are above people because they’re so smart, and in reality, they are down-to-earth people," he said, sharing his newfound perspective on the space agency's workforce.
