While Texas A&M’s is a history birthed and bathed in the richness of tradition, the university is also home to its share of non-traditional students like Vaneza Palma Barron ’25 who epitomize the meaning of being an Aggie through their dedication, passion and perseverance in all aspects of their educational experience.
Palma Barron grew up in the Bryan-College Station community and says she fostered a deep-rooted connection to the Aggies early on. Living in Aggieland as a first generation Mexican American, she knew she wanted to attend Texas A&M as a way to honor her parents, if not also herself.
“I wanted to make my parents proud of me, to let them know that without them, I wouldn’t have the opportunities I have now,” Palma Barron said. “I also wanted to prove to myself that I could accomplish whatever I set my mind to.”
After graduating in the top 10% of her high school class in 2018, Palma Barron received automatic admission to Texas A&M — an offer she declined due to financial reasons. Five years of hard work later, she was able to reapply in 2023 with an original plan of pursuing a major in psychology that later changed to sociology.
“Honestly, I was set on being a psychology major, and I was sad to let that dream go, but I’m happy with how things happened,” Palma Barron said.
Although psychology and sociology have many similarities, Palma Barron says she was drawn to the latter because of the many different avenues available to her for exploration and further studies.
“Not only does sociology focus on the individual, it also focuses on the individual’s place in the world when part of a collective,” Palma Barron said. “It’s exciting to study human perception and interaction with others; it gives me insight into why people feel, think and act the way they do.”
Science is key in everything — where would we be without discovery and knowledge? And without the arts, the world would lack some diversity, since we need the arts to release creativity.
Palma Barron’s passion for studying society and the actions of those within it stems from her desire to help the people around her. Throughout her life, she says she has made consistent efforts to be someone that others can seek out for help.
“A sociology degree will help me pursue my passion in that I will be able to help others in a professional setting rather than just offering help to friends and acquaintances,” Palma Barron said. “With this degree, I hope to help people with mental health issues, addiction, disabilities — anyone who struggles with something out of their control to cope with their issues and improve their life."
With classes like Sociology 230: Classical Social Theory, Palma Barron says the College of Arts and Sciences has made it enjoyable to learn.
“Learning about a different theorist each week and writing a critical analysis of them has been helpful in expanding my sociology knowledge,” she added.
Palma Barron also credits the class with providing her with invaluable insight into finding a career path that best suits her passion for others.
“We had to write a term paper about our career goal and connect it back to a classical theorist,” Palma Barron explained. “While I have a general idea of the career I would like to pursue, reflecting back to a theorist has been eye-opening and has helped me lock down my career path.”
For Palma Barron, the College of Arts and Sciences has presented her with unique opportunities and advantages that she could not find anywhere else. In particular, she says the college is especially important to her because of her belief that it encompasses a huge aspect of what is important in the world.
“Science is key in everything — where would we be without discovery and knowledge?” Palma Barron said. “And without the arts, the world would lack some diversity, since we need the arts to release creativity.
“Science answers the question on how humans evolve in the world, while art furthers that by asking what humans do to understand the world around them.”