Tamara Alarcon Basurto

This is a photo of me wearing a T-shirt with an illustration I designed. I was inspired to show what counseling meant to me. I had a difficult time living away from my family and friends due to Covid, and I was so afraid to reach out for help. I called this design “baby steps” inspired by my counseling experience.

2021-2022 Scholarship
Noma L. Hanlon Endowed Scholarship

Degree: BFA Product Design, Minor in Entrepreneurship

Expected Graduation Date: Spring 2023

I Am Originally From Lima, Peru

WHY I CAME TO THE UO AND HOW I CHOSE MY MAJOR
The chose the University of Oregon because it has a highly competitive Product Design program and it’s the best in Oregon. I also chose the UO because the connections they have, together with my work, will place me in the top industry.

I started as an Art student, but felt that I wanted my work to have a different impact on society. Product Design was a better fit for my interests and professional goals. I want to make design for disability, inclusive design, global design.

UNIQUE QUALITIES I BRING TO MY STUDIES
I was raised in an impoverished region of Peru called San Juan de Lurigancho. I have seen and experienced the growth of a population in disorder and need. My desire to make something that could change lives started when I was six years old, and the first product I developed aimed to get blind people closer to their Peruvian culture. The conditions of people with disabilities in developing countries are extreme because there is a lack of resources, and they face limitations intellectually, professionally, socially, and more. My cultural background and my passion for product design, are the assets I am bringing to my studies.

MY INFLUENTIAL PROFESSORS
Joyce Cheng, Associate Professor of modern art in the Department of the History of Art and Architecture, is someone I admire, and I will be forever grateful to her for pushing my capacities further. Her class was one of the hardest classes I have taken so far, and the amount of work was so demanding. However, her encouragement and trust that I can make good work were essential. I learned with her that I am capable of more than I could ever have imagine.

MY GREATEST LEARNING EXPERIENCE AT UO
Working as a video animator and graphic designer at the Center of Human and Development (CHD) is  the greatest learning experience I have had so far at UO. The CHD mission is to “break barriers for Oregonians with disabilities and improve lives through systems change.” I love to create content that is meaningful.

AFTER GRADUATION
I would like to work for Nike as a product designer for at least 2 to 4 years. My objective is to gain knowledge about how a corporation works. Later I would like to open my own studio with a focus on design for disability. I have seen that many things should be more inclusive. I only need the resources and the knowledge. I am excited that soon enough I will be able to use what I learn in the classroom and apply it to products of my own.

YOUR GIFT
School is expensive. I knew that if I wanted this to work out, I would have to help my family not only by succeeding academically but by supporting myself financially. I work while being a full-time student, and sometimes I’ve had to put my projects aside to meet tuition expenses. This scholarship means that I will have more time to spend on my career goals and ambitions. I have so much to offer, and I am so excited that I will be able to show myself and everyone what I am capable of.

Thank you for believing that I can succeed.