ABSTRACT
Transitioning into new academic settings is challenging, even more when dealing with unprecedented events such as a global pandemic. This work reflects on my experiences as a Bolivian woman starting a journey into the academic world. The time framework for this autoethnography captures three quintessential moments in the life of any graduate student. First, finishing my MA thesis and graduating from the University of Toledo in Ohio, right in the middle of the first wave of COVID-19. The second moment was lockdown during summer, when I discovered ways to deal with isolation and online socialization. The third moment, which I am still navigating is my first semester in the PhD program at University of Florida, where I experience education that is fully online. During these three moments, I deal with the constant recognition of a new world, as well as an ongoing questioning of my identity. I find theoretical shelter in the concept of Ch’ixi, which is a Bolivian sociological paradigm to explain dynamics of belonging.
