William Rodríguez: Helping others broaden their horizons
MIT senior and Model UN leader William Rodríguez helps to encourage the global exchange of ideas.
“I really value the mission [of Model United Nations]. You want to broaden the horizons so that students are exposed to problems and issues that they might never encounter in a typical classroom setting — problems involving countries and cultures different from their own.”
— William Rodríguez, MIT senior, '18
William Rodríguez grew up resetting the family router and fixing all things technological in his home in San Juan, Puerto Rico. When the self-described computer junkie began to look at colleges, he knew that MIT was the right fit.
“I’ve always been interested in technology and in the different ways in which you can make people’s lives better through [technological] tools,” Rodríguez says. “MIT had that spirit of using technology and underscoring the importance of innovation.”
Once he arrived in Cambridge, Rodríguez followed his passion for computer science and majored in electrical engineering and computer science. After taking 14.73 (The Challenge of World Poverty) taught by Esther Duflo, the Abdul Latif Jameel Professor of Poverty Alleviation and Development Economics, Rodríguez decided to declare a minor in economics.
“I learned that economics was basically applying science to humans, to the systems we create, and to the ways we think,” Rodríguez says. “I enjoy engineering, but I also really enjoy the humanities and social sciences, so this pairing came naturally to me.”
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