Informatics student

Q: Please share any additional academic plans (dual degree, research focus, minor, specialization, etc.) you’re pursuing.

A: I am on the Data Science track.

Q: What about the information field do you find exciting and how do you hope to make an impact?

A: Data gives you information, but only after you apply science to it do you receive answers that can improve communication, results, and interaction. I use data science to improve intelligence collection in the Army National Guard, which ultimately inspired me to apply it to my civilian career. As a Flight Software Engineer at NASA Langley, I analyze mission logs and manage data infrastructure for SAGE III, a device aboard the International Space Station. I want to continue creating change in the way we use technology through automation and accuracy, leading up to safer ways of traveling in space.

Q: What inspired you to pursue your degree/career plan?

A: While I was overseas on a deployment in Afghanistan, I had access to a database system that cataloged all significant activity and people of interest into one platform for all U.S. military branches to use. This software, with the ability to visualize data and find patterns in scattered information, directly saved the lives of my comrades on multiple occasions. The work I was doing enabled me to make a difference on a large scale through automation and analytics. That’s when I knew I found my passion for data science. This is why I made the decision to return to college: to earn a degree in Informatics with a focus in Data Science at the University of Washington.

Q: Tell us about an experience you’ve had at the iSchool that has informed or reshaped your career goals?

A: Originally, I had no idea what data science was, or that it was the subject I was looking for. With the help of our Informatics advisors, I figured out that data science was what I was doing overseas and that it should be my degree focus. At the time Informatics didn't offer a data science track, but it was in the works. I attended Seattle Central College before transferring, becoming involved in research with rocketry, satellite and weather balloons. With the guidance and inclusion the iSchool offered me, even though I wasn't attending UW, they gave me the confidence that this was where I needed to be.

Q: What’s been your favorite iSchool course or learning experience (i.e. directed fieldwork, research project, etc.)?

A: In the Data Science Methods course, I learned more capabilities and tools that I could use in my career, and expanded the way I evaluated data.

Q: What about your educational journey thus far are you most proud of?

A: I'll have been going to college on and off for about nine years by the time I graduate in 2020. I've paid my own way through college. I've taken my time to graduate, but after five internships, I've found my niche with aerospace. After all this time, I'm going to walk across that stage and be happy with the decisions I've made.

Q: What is next on the horizon for you?

A: I have an internship at Ball Aerospace over the summer, working as a System Engineer in Mission Analysis designing spacecraft constellations for government missions.

Q: What is the best advice you have received?

A: Always try.