Name:Â Tiffany Reyes
Age:Â 19
Year:Â Sophomore
Major:Â Computer Science (formerly Art History)
Hometown:Â Pines, Florida
Relationship Status:Â Single
Her Campus (HC):Â What made you decide to switch majors?
Tiffany Reyes (TR): If I want to be super blunt, it’s money. If I went for Art History I wouldn’t get enough financial help. The amount I would get pursuing a PhD wouldn’t even put a dent of the debt so in the long run it would be costly without a guarantee of getting a steady job. So that’s the logical standpoint. On the other hand… back in high school I had this teacher who was like my mentor. He taught me everything I know about Art History, and he was like “your passion should be your job”, but after a while I realized that wasn’t what was most important to me. I understand that some people want to follow their dreams and I think that takes a lot of courage and that’s awesome, but I figured out that it’s not something I can do. I feel like, maybe I didn’t love Art History enough to do that.
HC:Â What are you looking for, then?
TR: I was raised to go for jobs that provide a sense of security, y’know? And when I was studying Art History it was hard to feel that sense of security that I really wanted, that my parents raised me to value. But I still love Art History and I can talk all day about it!
HC: That’s good! Glad it’s still a passion of yours. Since Thanksgiving is this week, are you going home?
TR: Yeah, I’m going on the Greyhound.
HC:Â Oh goodness! Do you have any advice for first timers?
TR: I usually travel overnight which is good so you can sleep. But I think, like anything, it’s better to travel with someone. One time I went a fight broke out in the back and the bus driver pulled over and told them that he was going to call the sheriff and delay everyone’s trip. The whole bus got mad so they stopped arguing. It was pretty intense.
HC: Woah, that’s crazy! Are you involved with any organizations on campus?
TR: Yep! I’m the secretary of the Filipino Student Association (FSA) and I absolutely love it. We’re affiliates of the Asian Student Union, so we’re separate but together. It’s a lot of work sometimes but I really love it. Whenever I have a bad day the people in FSA are there for me, we’re there for each other. My E-board is so nice, and we’re so tight knit and we get our stuff done. I was on boards in high school, done every position, a couple at the same time which was a mess, but back then I didn’t feel as close to the people on them like I do now. I never feel idle. I used to spend a lot of time playing video games last year, so I didn’t know anyone. FSA helped me come out of my shell and we all care about each other’s personal growth. It’s nice to have found my niche. Other than that I’m trying to get into TechNole, which is the technology club on campus. I want to get involved with my new major.Â
HC: That’s really awesome. You mentioned video games, give us the full breakdown: which are your favorites? What kinds do you enjoy? We had an article on Fallout 4 last week if you want to check it out.
TR: I usually like open world, narrative games. Basically the all-around good game, and the popular formula right now is stuff like Fallout 4. Also 55 percent of the gaming community is women so I’m not as weird as I once thought. Assassin’s Creed was a big thing for me. I started gaming when I was nine, but then I stopped because school got busy. But Assassin’s got me back into gaming. Brotherhood was what I started with. And then I went back and played every game before it. After I went through all of those I wanted to branch out so I played Final Fantasy 13, which was too linear for my liking. But the new one coming out next year I’m really excited for.
HC: I saw the animation for that, it’s crazy!
TR: It’s so great! I’ve been waiting for that game since 8th grade. I remember showing my friends back in biology class that year and saying, “I can’t wait to play this when I’m a senior.” Fast forward to now and we still don’t have a set release date for 2016, so the anticipation is killing me!
HC:Â You said earlier that finding out that 55 percent of gamers are women made you feel less weird. Could you talk a little about that?
TR: Sure! I would love to do a panel on women in gaming and their place in the community because I feel like the environment is a bit toxic. There’s always a bias against girls. Like for me as a girl and as a gamer, I’m really scared of using that term. Because I don’t want people to be like “Oh, she’s a gamer look at her. She plays games so guys will like her. She’s got nothing else going for her” which is why I like my guy friends back home and online because they treat me like one of them. Because I am one of them. But there are girls who stream and play games with like low cut shirts on and on one hand it’s like, “Well that’s a bad image for all women who are gamers” but on the other hand it’s like “That’s not her responsibility to uphold an entire community, we should be individuals”.
HC: It’s complex, like feminism.
TR: Right! And they also get a lot of views and as a result a lot of money. And they wouldn’t be doing it if that didn’t happen. So it a cycle; basic supply and demand. The guys want to call them out on it but at the same time they’re the ones watching. To shame the people providing the service while simultaneously demanding the service is ridiculous. So, yeah, I would love to do a panel on women’s place in the gaming community, but I don’t know if it will happen. We’ll see.Â