Social media influencer stays focused on business degreeApril 11, 2024

On May 10, Andrew Sanchez will be the first person in his family to graduate from college.  He will receive an associate degree in Business with plans to continue taking classes at Midland College toward a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Organizational Management.  His entrepreneurial spirit is leading him in the direction to eventually start his own business.

While he doesn’t like to refer to himself as a social media influencer, Sanchez currently has over 65,000 TikTok followers from all over the world, and advertisers pay him to promote products through his TikTok posts regarding K-pop (Korean popular music) and anime.  In fact recently, Sanchez traveled to Los Angeles courtesy of Rakuten Viki, an international Asian-focused video streaming website and streaming channel.

“I started this as a hobby during COVID,” Sanchez explained.  “One day I posted a video of myself being funny and imitating my favorite group Blackpink, a K-pop girl group.  I couldn’t believe the people that liked it, so I kept doing it.  I have followers from all over the world, mainly the United States, Japan and the United Kingdom.”

Sanchez was a sophomore at Midland High School when the world shut down due to the COVID pandemic in March 2020.  However, his days were not spent with just social media.  He was also very serious about continuing his high school studies online.  The next year, his junior year, he continued to take online courses.  When he was a high school senior, he was able to graduate a semester early because of his diligence in completing high school credits online.  He was ranked in the top 3 percent (#19) of the Midland High School 2022 graduating class. 

“Excelling in school has always been important to me,” Sanchez said.  “I quit playing soccer when I was 15 in order to focus on my academics.”

After he completed high school, he enrolled in Midland College and mostly continued to take online courses.  He takes 12+ hours each semester and also works 35+ hours a week as a grocery rep at H-E-B, usually getting to work at 2:00 am.  When he leaves work at 11:00 am, he hits the gym.  He said that he maintains this routine Monday through Thursday, and he saves Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays for online coursework, writing papers, performing required research and completing homework assignments.  He takes advantage of the Midland College Fasken Learning Resource Center (library) for a quiet place to study in a relaxed atmosphere.

In addition to his regular courses, Sanchez is also a member of the Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society, and he is a Midland College Honors student, which means that he has to complete extra assignments and projects in order to graduate with the “Honors” designation on his transcript.  His most recent project was researching and writing a paper for a Strategic Management class on the multinational company Christian Dior and that company’s managerial techniques and business plan.

“The more I learn in my business courses, the more I know that this is the right direction for my career,” Sanchez said.  “While my ultimate goal is to start my own business, I think that I would first like to work in the finance or accounting department of a company, probably an oil and gas company.  I am attending Midland College on the Young Professionals in Energy (YPE) Scholarship, and I’ve met some of the members of that organization who have been very supportive and have helped to guide me.”

Sanchez said that the YPE Scholarship is allowing him to maintain his personal standard of having no debt.

“One of my goals is to be totally self-sufficient by the time I am 22,” he explained.  “My mother is a single, independent, hardworking mom.  She has inspired me so much throughout my life.  I am so proud of her for supporting a family all on her own.  I want to be able to help her.” 

Sanchez said that family is very important to him.  He has two older siblings—a brother who is an automotive mechanic manager and a sister who has two children and will start taking Cosmetology courses at Midland College this coming fall.  His younger brother is a senior in high school and plans to attend Midland College in the fall, as well.

While Andrew Sanchez has definite plans about his future, he said that the important thing right now is for him to stay disciplined and concentrate on his courses at Midland College.  The TikTok posts are a fun diversion for him; however, he said that he doesn’t see “influencer” being on his resume.  It has given him insight into how social media platforms can promote a business and connect with existing and potential customers—lessons that he will carry with him in his entrepreneurial endeavors.