Which course has had the most impact on your experience as a CS student?

I find it interesting that I never considered my experience only as a CS student. Even though I am mostly taking CS Courses and pursuing a CS Specialist, the course that had the most impact on my experience is not a CS course. In my first year, I was fortunate enough to take a Latin 101 course with Professor Jarrett Welsh. This experience was exciting but demanding at the same time. I improved my time management skills with it, LAT101 allowed me to "take a break" from learning CS concepts. The Latin language has very rigid and strict rules, which makes learning it even more exciting for people who like formal logic. That is why I recommend everyone to have an elective together with the required courses for their major. You can accomplish much more when you have a chance to switch context once in a while.

What have been the most important experiences for you outside of the classroom?

There are so many! I joined a First-year Learning Community (FLC) in my first year, and I still keep in touch with many of my friends there. I joined the Computer Science Student Union (CSSU) as a Director of Internal Relations a year ago. I am now volunteering as the President of the CSSU and the experience is very rewarding. I joined the Technology Leadership Initiative (TLI), and I owe them big thanks for the professional and peer network they helped me build. I am now a TA for CSC209 and I absolutely love helping others find the right approach to problems I was puzzled about myself. The opportunities are endless and really depend on what you want to do. I wanted to get as many friends and connections as I can, and I think all groups I joined helped me achieve that.

How have your experiences this year been shaped by the pandemic?

Of course, we are all disappointed about the lack of in-person activities and offline socialization. Reaching people online has been harder than usual, but at the same time fosters innovation and figuring out new approaches to interactions. This year made me realize how much value of the university experience is attributed to making friends and setting up new connections. In the end, it does not matter that much what you study, but who you study with. It is extremely easy to learn anything online these days, so universities will have to adapt or become irrelevant. I am sincerely hoping for the former.

Tell us about connections you’ve made with faculty, alumni, or peer or professional mentors. How have these relationships shaped your experiences in CS?

I think I touched on this before in one of the previous questions. In terms of shaping experience, I don’t see it that way. I could not predict what happens if I join the CSSU or not, if I reach out to an industry professional, or stay quiet (because they know a lot and are kind of scary). I just said “yes” to everything I could, and some things worked out, others did not at all. That’s why it is always interesting to try – you never know how it turns out later.

As a CS student, what are you most looking forward to 2021? (Beyond being able to see friends, instructors and classmates in person again!)

I have a lot of projects planned for the year. While the pandemic has been hard on me and my friends, it also gave me a moment to stop and think carefully about what I do. It’s like a shock, you know, totally unpredictable. Suddenly, you can’t do the things you were doing before, over and over again, stuck in the whole loop called “life.” I am looking forward to travelling more (probably to some parks and trails that are still open), spending more time doing what I like and what is important to me. My goal for 2021 is to be offline more than online, to live a healthy lifestyle, and to make every day exciting and worth living. At least I’ll try and see what happens.