Student - College of Education

Andrea Lopez-Soto was born and raised in San José, Costa Rica. She earned her Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from the Faculty of Dentistry at the University of Costa Rica and later completed a Master of Science in Dentistry at the Federal University of Minas Gerais in Brazil (2017). Since August 2024, Andrea has been pursuing a Ph.D. in Health Behavior and Health Education at the University of Texas at Austin, where she also serves as a Graduate Research Assistant. Her current research focuses on substance use, cultural stress, and family dynamics among Latin American populations, with particular attention to adolescents, parents, and migration experiences. She is also interested in the intersection of behavioral health and oral health disparities in these communities.

Pablo Montero-Zamora (Supervisor)
Focuses on understanding how contextual, familial, and individual-level factors influence substance use, mental health, and chronic diseases, and translating this evidence into culturally adapted, evidence-based interventions spanning a spectrum from primary to tertiary prevention to address persistent health disparities in the U.S. and low- and middle-income countries.

Andrea M Lopez Soto