Overview
- Renato Gaitán and Sebastián Lozada, both 18, were confirmed on Friday as admitted to MIT with all expenses covered by Beca Cometa, Grupo Intercorp's scholarship initiative.
- Both students have top finishes in national and international math contests, including a Gold Medal at the International Mathematical Olympiad, credentials that admissions officers cited as decisive.
- Beca Cometa, launched in 2021, says it has reached about 100 scholars and supplies funding, TOEFL and SAT preparation, English classes and one-on-one admissions advising to help applicants apply to elite U.S. universities.
- The pair first learned about the program via social media and contact at a Fest event in Lima, and both plan to study pure mathematics at MIT with the stated goal of returning to Peru.
- MIT admissions remain highly selective—about 30,000 applicants for roughly 1,300 places with close to 100 international students—so this placement highlights how focused outreach and coaching can build a pipeline of Peruvian STEM talent and may increase similar recruitment efforts.