A day with Abelardo
In September, we visited Abelardo, one of the young participants of our Scholarships Programme who is currently studying and living in the city of Cusco. We wanted to chat with him and learn more about his experience in the programme and explore what a regular day in his life looks like.
Abelardo is currently in his 5th semester studying Metallic Construction Mechanics at SENATI. At the moment, he studies one day a week, from 7:30 am to 2:30 pm, whilst developing his final project. The rest of the week, he works as an intern at a workshop in the district of San Jeronimo. Every morning, he wakes up early, takes a shower and goes to work. This is the first time he is living alone. “I used to live with my aunt and uncle right on the entrance of Ccorca. I used to help them by managing their oven. We woke up at 2:00 am to make bread and at 7:00 am I went to my classes, but it took me two hours to get there and the bus was packed with people. I had to sit by the door to get off at my bus stop on time,” he remembers. Now, Abelardo lives 15 minutes away from work and 20 minutes away from SENATI, where he used to have in-person classes. He doesn’t have breakfast at home, instead he buys some food at a kiosk next to his bus stop.
At the workshop, Abelardo helps with different projects, according to what needs doing each week. “He is learning so much,” says Francisco, his boss. “We support him as much as we can so that he continues to grow professionally, and we are also flexible with his time whenever he has a meeting or homework to do.” At lunchtime, Abelardo also answers some of his Mentoree’s questions. This year, Amantani implemented the “Peer Mentoring” strategy, where 4 young people became members of the team in order to provide support to the participants based on their own experience as students. “I help them a lot with everything related to SENATI. This is why I became a Mentor. At first, I didn’t know how to do all the paperwork or how to use the virtual platform. Now, I want to help them so that they have it easier than I did.”
Abelardo returns home at night, has dinner and does homework. He likes living in the city. “You just have to get used to it. You have to visit new places, instead of only exploring the surroundings of your workplace,” he recommends. On weekends, he sometimes goes back to Ccorca to visit his family. Carmen Rosa, one of his younger sisters who is also part of the Scholarships Programme decided to continue studying virtually from home, so Abelardo helps her a bit when he goes to see her.
In 2022, Abelardo will be joining over 20 young people who have finished their studies and who are ready to grow professionally. Once he graduates, Abelardo would love to get a formal job. “I would like to work in mining or continue working at the workshop and learn more. My brother and I have also talked about being entrepreneurs and becoming more independent,” he shares with excitement.