The last article promoted Vitoria Mario's funding page so she can attend her dream university: Warwick. Recently, Vitoria achieved her goal and was featured in the news! We are so inspired by her perseverance, passion and commitment to Maths - and so decided to find out more about Vitoria below.
Huge thank you to Dara Abimbola, one of Pioneer's Outreach Officers, for carrying out the interview!
"some people (perhaps more girls) ... base their choices on other people's experiences and then they don't even take a risk ... at least try as they have nothing to lose, only to gain."
How did you discover your love for Maths?
I have discovered that I enjoy Maths a lot since I was in primary
school. It has and I think it will always be my favourite subject. Since
early on I loved the certainty of it and it was the subject that was
most easy to study here as Maths is Maths wherever we go. Same numbers,
just different languages!
What are your views on Maths with regards to stem?
I think Maths is the most challenging STEM subject due to its
complexity and infinity expansion. It just never stops, there's always
someone that somehow, somewhere discovers something and that limitlessness
of Maths is just unreal.
Have you ever struggled with Maths? If so, how did you combat it?
To be honest I don't remember a time where I fully struggled at
Maths, however there are some topics that I just don't enjoy as much
such as stats. I just felt it was so long and a bit unnecessary but
because it was part of the spec I would always make sure that I
understood it in order to be ready for any tests/exams.
What would you say to any young girl wanting to explore the world of Maths?
I would say 'Go ahead, it's as hard as it seems'. I think the
problem of some people (perhaps more girls) is that they base their
choices on other people's experiences and then they don't even take a
risk but rather overcomplicate it even before trying. Maths is simple
and straight to the point. But it also depends on how you approach it.
So, yes, I would indeed encourage any females to at least try as they have nothing to lose, only to gain.
What are your next steps from now?
Is there anything else you'd like to add?
At the moment, I am going to start doing some Maths again as I miss
it, in order to prepare for uni. I would also like to say that I am available for tutoring (online)
for anyone from primary school to year 13, in Maths of course. In
addition, I would also like to mention that after I graduate I intend
to pursue a career in Tech or become an Actuary. Moreover, in the
future I intend to create my own charity/organisation where
scholarships/sponsorships will be given to individuals that might find
themselves in my situation. And that organisation would also be used
as a tool to encourage females to pursue careers in STEM and
eventually increase the rate of female graduates from STEM subjects!