Student in Computer Engineering at The University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign

I am a junior in Computer Engineering at The University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. I am planning on minoring in HOEFT Technology and Management. I am trilingual and proficient in the coding languages Java, C, C++, and Python. I also have adequate experience in app development through Android Studio.

"Design is where science and art break even."

Robin Matthews

Background

Ever since I was a kid, I have always had a keen interest in technology, whether it be computers or one of my mechanical toys I made by hand. Now, I believe that this passion of mine wasn’t quite self-developed. Instead, it was almost inherited by me from my grandpa through his passion for engineering whether it be looking at his designs or helping him build projects as a kid.

Diving into my past, I am originally an international student who moved to the states from a third-world country - India. From my perspective, moving here presented me with unfathomable opportunities to hone my skills and work hard not just for myself, but for my parents that worked hard to get me to the position I am in today.

Fast forward to high school, I had managed to narrow down my interest to the vast yet mysterious world of computing. Not only had I already discovered my passion for back-end development but rekindled the one for working with hardware and circuits. Now, in order to orient myself with these concepts, I did a lot of research and played around with different components in my free time. That is the way I learned how to initially start coding in Java, which led me to apply my previous knowledge and learn other programming languages on the side. As I started learning all these algorithms and the complexities associated with them, I needed a practical way of implementing them. That’s when I dabbled my hands into Arduino microcontrollers, which is what essentiated my interest in both hardware and software end of processing.

Next, I decided to volunteer under a management program provided by my school through an organization called People’s Resource Center. This led me to yet again realize the third and final career interest I wanted to pursue. Upon researching more and more not only about my interests but finding potential career choices as a junior, one career path that caught my attention was tech consulting. As I looked more and more into the concept of consulting, the more and more intrigued I became with the profession. First of all, tech consultants stay in direct contact with business leaders who seek their advice. The thing that really stuck with me was the versatility and the flexibility of the job in general as you can practically work in various industries and functions mainly because every industry has been affected by digitalization.

Ever since, I have put my resources and time into not only learning but quantifying my interests in these specific industries whether it be through RSOs or my coursework.

Achievements

Software Developer

App Scape is a development company created by multiple undergraduates from UIUC, which works on software-based projects.

Worked on the app permissions based on the Gradle buildup plugin, which outlines some of the basic DSL elements.

App created - Google service-based translation app created with Java/Kotlin using Android Studio ( currently available on the Google Play Store -> TextFluent )

Link -> https://play.google.com/store/...

Mentorship Chair

The Engineering Council is an organization that aims to provide resources and support for engineering students and societies.

Planned and hosted College-wide events that provide educational, service, and social opportunities for all majors. Worked with alumni and professors to provide mentorship opportunities to freshmen and sophomores.

Volunteer in Management

People's Resource Center is a social service, non-profit organization in DuPage County.

Organized events that offered nutritious food and other basic necessities like clothes and rent assistance for neighbors in need. Processed incoming food donations and organized a food pantry, developing a new system of grouping items by expiration date to reduce monthly food waste by 15%.