CSpotlight: Creating an Inclusive Environment

Why did you choose to pursue a degree in computer science specifically at the University of Minnesota?

I chose the University of Minnesota because they offer a strong, comprehensive computer science and data science program focusing on real-world applications. This university has a lot of emphasis on research and collaboration. There are a lot of companies outside of the university that could expand my skills in the real world, and also offer me opportunities for insight into professional development.

How did you become interested in computer science? What are your specific interests within the field?

I started with a finance major, but during that time I took a Python class because I knew that coding is helpful with finance. After taking a Python class, I switched to Actuarial Science that is related to math. Then I took another class, CSCI 2081 Introduction to Software Development, which is the initial step for data science. That's how I gained a lot of interest in computer science. I started to do more research and realized that data science combines computer science and statistics. I realized that I would like it more if I followed this path because it fits my interests, like working with and interpreting data and looking at data through a computer. That's why I switched to data science.

Congratulations on earning the Optum Computer Science & Engineering Scholarship! How will this scholarship impact your academic and extracurricular work?

The Optum Scholarship has been an incentive to me for my academic journey. Not just financial but also academic, because it allowed me to focus more on coursework and extracurriculars. I am currently an officer for the Data Science Club, so I have to take care of a lot more stuff than just studying right now. I have the flexibility to join those leadership roles. With this scholarship helping me financially, I don’t have to think about financial constraints. I can think about myself more within that leadership role, use my extra time for my hobbies, and help other people. It has helped me get more insight from workers in the industry when I had the opportunity to talk to them.

Tell us more about your internship experiences.

It’s not an internship but a job with the school that's within my major. I currently work as an E-Forms & Workflow Development Assistant at the University of Minnesota. I collaborate with the UI/UX Content Strategy and project management to contribute to the process of the CS&E department, such as the process of late fee requests, when you do that you are going through the Department of Academic Resources. During the summer, I created more than 15 student forms, and I collaborated with the backend workflow to be able to improve data management. Another project I worked on was extracting information from automatic emails from the user when they are submitting the form, and being able to transfer it to the backend. That is a very valuable project that I had.

Are you involved in any student groups? What inspired you to get involved? 

I am actively involved in the Data Science Club, because we found out that the school had so many coding clubs but they didn't have any data science clubs. I am currently an engagement and resources coordinator. It's more about getting funds, setting up rooms, getting resources, and collaborating with a team to be able to plan events. Working with that club helped me learn more leadership skills and collaboration skills. Beyond that, I also volunteer as a teaching assistant at the Society of Asian Scientists and Engineering. I mentor high school students in Python, which is helping me with the valuable skill of talking in front of people.

What do you hope to contribute to the computer science community at the University?

I want to continue facilitating a collaborative and inclusive environment at the University of Minnesota. It has been much better the last two years, I feel like everybody is supporting each other. Through my role at the Data Science Club, I also want to collaborate with lots of people from different backgrounds who have an interest in data science. It doesn't matter where you are from; we want to be able to help them grow with activities like speaker events. I also hope to connect and create more spaces where students can use their knowledge and also get insight to be able to solve real-world problems through guest lectures, and team projects, about how we can work together as a team.

What advice do you have for incoming computer science students?

For me, I believe that getting involved as early as possible through clubs, internships, and side projects, is really important. Especially freshman year, because you can get more insight in the beginning when you have more energy. When you start school, you don’t have to worry too much about heavy courses, you can apply those classes to a real-world problem. Also, don’t be afraid to ask questions, nobody is going to look down on you because you don’t know everything. People will try to help because they are professionals and upperclassmen. Collaboration is key and they should be able to help you out more if you ask questions.

What are your plans after graduation?

I don’t have a plan that is too big right now. I will go with whatever path I feel is suitable for me at the moment. I am going to apply for jobs. I want to see what the job market looks like and to be able to apply my skills to what looks important in the industrial world, especially in a tech-driven industry. I also like finance, so I could be a data analyst or data scientist at a banking or financial company. I am also going to apply to a master's program because I believe that being able to expand my skills more deeply in data science will help me a lot to prepare for jobs that might be hard to find.