“I Want to Be an Indigenous Professional”: Narratives of Indigenous University Students in Iquitos

Abstract

This paper analyzes the narratives of eight Indigenous Amazonian students from the Universidad Nacional de la Amazonía Peruana (UNAP), who are members of the Organization of Students of Indigenous Peoples of the Peruvian Amazon (OEPIAP). It focuses on four women and four men from different Indigenous communities enrolled in various university programs in Iquitos. It examines their experiences of displacement to the city, the collective work of Indigenous organizations to guarantee their access, retention, and graduation, as well as the limitations and forms of discrimination they face during their studies. It also explores their dilemmas, aspirations, and what it means for them to be an Indigenous professional. The study shows that the notion of the Indigenous professional proposed by these students offers a path to rethinking the profile of future professionals.