Reflecting on my time at the University of Washington, which has been filled with many highs and lows, is bittersweet. While each year came with its own unique set of challenges and rewards, the themes of mentorship, resilience and unwavering support from friends and family have persisted throughout. Intertwined throughout my portfolio are artifacts from courses as well as images of friends and the places I had the opportunity to travel throughout the past four years. These people and experiences are equally as important as artifacts from my courses in highlighting my growth, passion and drive. The people, mentorship and experiences over the past four years at the University of Washington have pushed me to grow into the strong, independent and driven woman I am today.

 

My journey started in 2018 as a direct admit in computer science to the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering and the Interdisciplinary Honors Program. My first low, and first experience with imposter syndrome, came within the first week of classes. I struggled to find a study group for my first CSE course, and ultimately ended up dropping the course after being unable to complete the first assignment. At the time, I felt like the Allen School had made a mistake admitting me to the program, and I wasn’t sure if I should continue in the major. However, just a short two quarters later, I’d meet a teaching assistant for the same CSE course named Phillip Garrison, who founded CSE 390Z, a course designed to support underrepresented students who didn’t have the educational opportunities to allow them to be successful in CSE courses.

 

I never thought that my lowest point at the University of Washington would become one of my highs and one of the most impactful parts of my time here. In August of 2019, Phillip reached out to offer me a teaching assistant position for the first offering of the course. He recognized that I was a student who needed extra support that didn’t currently exist, and that it would lend a unique insight to building and iterating on a new course designed to provide the missing support. Despite the fact I struggled with the theoretical material we would be teaching, I wanted to support other students who were struggling and help close the gaps in education and access that are so profound in science and engineering. I’ve loved every minute of teaching, and after seven quarters and one global pandemic, I’m now the head teaching assistant for CSE 390Z. I’ve had the opportunity to meet and work with so many students, learn how to respond to student needs, adapt a course on the fly for online learning, advocate for better support and discussions around imposter syndrome, and design materials, reflections and problems for the course. Teaching, and in particular the mentors I’ve had, have been the most influential in how much my confidence, passion and fearlessness to advocate have grown. I can’t imagine what my time would have looked like at the University of Washington without it. 

 

The time over these past four years has flown by so quickly. Between my first and second year at the University of Washington, I had the opportunity to study abroad in Amsterdam through the Honors Program, which is highlighted on my portfolio. I became an Honors Peer Educator in Autumn 2019, where I taught section BN of HONORS 100 and completed my second experiential learning requirement for the Honors Program. On October 25, 2019, I was accepted to the Michael G. Foster School of Business as an Information Systems major, and I will be only the second woman in the history of the University of Washington to graduate with my combination of degrees. Just several weeks later, the COVID-19 pandemic began, and I spent the remainder of my second and all of my third year at the University of Washington both teaching and taking online courses. In summer of 2021, I completed my first internship at Palantir Technologies as a Forward Deployed Software Engineering Intern in the U.S. Government division. In Autumn 2021, I signed my offer letter to spend summer of 2022 as a Software Engineering Intern at Microsoft, before I finally complete my last quarter at the University of Washington in Autumn 2022. 

 

While, like many seniors, I am anxiously awaiting graduation and starting a career following my passion in software engineering, I will miss the community, friends, campus and memories I have made here. I still remember my first day of classes like it was yesterday, nervously walking into my first computer science class, not sure what the next four years would hold. Little did I know, they would be some of the most transformative and memorable times in my life. From the lows of struggling academically in my courses freshman year to highs of landing my first software engineering internship at Palantir Technologies, I am proud of the academic, engineer and woman I have grown to be today.