Girl Code Women In Computing

This is my last episode with Girl Code since I'm graduating and what better way to end it than by interviewing Jessica Lam, a current UCSD undergraduate majoring in computer science. Jessica has inspired me since the day I learned about her, from doing great work at ACM Cyber, doing undergraduate research, and publishing papers. I hope her story gives you more insight into cybersecurity, research, and joining orgs as an undergraduate!

Today we have Mattaniah Aytenfsu, a UX engineer at youtube and an influencer on Tiktok. I couldn’t wait to have her on the podcast because she is a Black woman breaking barriers in the tech industry, bringing her most authentic and creative self to her everyday work and passions outside her career at Youtube. As you’ll hear, she’s a multitalented woman and that gave me so much inspiration that loving “tech” doesn’t mean just doing backend or frontend, but can be what you make of it. 

Tiktok: @muhtanya 

In today’s episode, we have Noelle Valencia, who is an experiential designer who majored in industrial design in college. Fun fact, we actually went to the same high school! Experiential and industrial design are closely related to many engineering majors. Additionally, design thinking and portfolio building are extremely relevant for computer science majors and programmers, especially if you want to work in HCI or frontend. I’m excited for you all to listen to this episode, and I hope you enjoy it!

In today’s episode, I have Kat Echazarreta! She is an Electrical Engineer at NASA JPL who has worked on 5 missions at NASA, currently doing her master’s at Johns Hopkins and a UCLA alumnus. Additionally, she is an Engineering/Science Communicator on social media, who, in her words, is proud of her Mexican roots and wants to show others that you can lead a successful career in STEM without sacrificing what makes you perfectly unique. 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katvoltage/

Website: https://www.katechazarreta.com/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@katvoltage?

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6UJNc_HIf08E6m2l9CDJBA

Ren and Vicky are two female engineers from Arista Networks that had great insights about what it means to be a senior-level engineer in tech, how to ask questions, and how to improve your communication skills. I enjoyed talking with them about all the "soft skills" that aren't widely discussed in the tech industry and how they can make or break your job. Enjoy!

I had the pleasure of taking Shannon Ellis' COGS 108 (Data Science in Practice) at UCSD and not only appreciated the class but the educator behind it all. In today's episode, we chat about her transition from biology into data science and eventually education research, not rejecting yourself, education during COVID, and so much more. I've found her to be one of the most empathetic, caring, and intelligent professors I've had to date, and am excited to share her wise words with you all! 

Website: http://www.shanellis.com/