But for Sanguino Dugarte, that level of hard work and perseverance has been a constant since she left Venezuela for the United States at age 19.
Born and raised in Venezuela, it wasn’t her plan to move abruptly to a new country alone, not even speaking the language. She was studying and preparing to start medical school. She hoped to visit New York with money saved from selling handmade jewelry.
“I thought I would spend summer break in the U.S. and start to learn some English,” said Sanguino Dugarte. “I planned to finish my education in Venezuela, but staying there became impossible due to the political situation and circumstances beyond my control.”
In New York, she stayed with a friend who had also left Venezuela due to political and socioeconomic unrest. Her fear of being in a new country and knowing very little of the language was washed away by the sense of freedom she felt far from the dangers of her home country.
Before long, Sanguino Dugarte began the process of changing her visa status to be able to work. She got a job as a cashier at a restaurant, which became a crash course in learning the English language.
“It was hard at first because people speak so fast. I would write down the names of the streets walking to and from work, and I spent hours on YouTube and Google just listening to phone numbers and looking at streets,” she said.
As she became more confident in her English, Sanguino Dugarte set her sights on a new goal: continuing her education in the U.S. rather than returning to Venezuela. She earned a scholarship to a New York college and began her associate’s degree in medical assisting.
“Since high school, I have always been interested in health care. My aunt is a pediatrician, and would help me study biology,” said Sanguino Dugarte.
She recalled opening her first textbook and bursting into tears, thinking she would not be able to make it. Working full-time at the restaurant while also carrying a full course load to keep her scholarship, Sanguino Dugarte persevered, sometimes translating her textbooks word-by-word.
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Upon finishing her associate’s degree, she began work as a medical assistant. She enjoyed the patient interactions but wanted to do more to help patients directly.
Sanguino Dugarte began to research bachelor’s degrees and was impressed by Rutgers School of Health Professions diagnostic medical sonography program.
In Venezuela, sonography is a track in medical school, so she jumped at the opportunity to pursue it as a bachelor’s program. Impressed by Rutgers’ accreditation and the competitiveness of the program, Sanguino Dugarte applied but was placed on the waitlist.
“Even that made me happy, because I was not rejected,” said Sanguino Dugarte, “I thought I would try again next year, but a spot opened up.” Sanguino Dugarte knew she would have to support herself completely while pursuing the degree.
She quit her full-time job and coordinated with her weekend job to take 12-hour shifts both Saturday and Sunday. She began her day at 4 a.m. and often stayed at the library late into the night after clinicals, the only time available to her to study.
“For 18 months I didn’t really have any days off,” said Sanguino Dugarte. “I used to walk around the urgent care on the weekend studying out loud.”
Her hard work was recognized when Sanguino Dugarte received SHP’s 2025 Clinical Excellence Award for diagnostic medical sonography, an honor given to students who demonstrate exceptional professionalism, and patient care during their clinical rotations.
Today, Sanguino Dugarte is employed at one of her clinical rotation sites. She sees sonography as the perfect blend of technical expertise and patient interaction.
“The program at Rutgers taught me that we’re doing more than just taking pictures,” she said. “We listen to their history, we notice things that may have been missed on their charts, and help provide the information needed to understand what’s going on inside the body to lead to a diagnosis.”
