In 2011, she was awarded the Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), the highest honor given by the United States to scientists who are in the early stages of their research careers, for her contributions to the study of neutrinos and her work in promoting STEM fields to women.

Her interest and passion for science began at an early age, after watching the 1980 television series "Cosmos".

[3] After graduating high school, Sánchez went on to study at Universidad de Los Andes, ULA in Mérida where she earned her BS in physics in 1995.

During this time she also joined the Main Injector Neutrino Oscillation Search (MINOS) team at Fermilab.

In 2007 she was hired as assistant physicist at the US Energy Department's Argonne National Laboratory, where she continues to work today.

[13] Her current work also includes the development of the next generation of the photodetectors, which are used in the detection of neutrinos but can also be used in medical imaging and other applications.