About Engineering

Image of circuits

Engineering is the process of applying mathematical and scientific principles to solve problems faced in the everyday world. Almost everything around us is a product of engineering. Engineers help solve some of the world's most important problems, promoting change and innovation. There are a variety of engineering fields, which makes pursuing engineering a viable option as there are many job opportunities as the world becomes more interconnected with technology.

Field of Interest: Computer Science

Visual representation of circuits and code

Computer science is the study of computers with a focus on the theory, design, development, and application of software. CS makes the digitalization of anything possible, and anything that is digital in any way was likely touched by a computer scientist at some point. Computer science is used for navigation, safety, communication, and for many other purposes.

Artificial Intelligence

Visual representation of a brain and circuits

Artificial intelligence is the ability to create and develop programs that simulate human intelligence. This application allows for the accomplishment of certain tasks that are beyond human capabilities.

Examples of AI:

  • Self-driving automobiles
  • User-specific data processing

Artificial intelligence is vastly critical to our daily lives. It plays an important role in what we view in social media, while browsing the web, and daily conveniences.

Skills That Computer Scientists Need

  • Programming
    • Need to know how to code
    • Should know at least one programming language:
      • C/C++
      • Java
      • Python
      • HTML, CSS, JavaScript
  • Learning
    • Need to be constantly learning
    • Languages constantly updating and changing
    • New technologies everyday
  • Problem Solving
    • Be able to consider mulitple and new solutions to a problem
    • Know relevant algorithms and data structures that assist in solving a problem
  • Attention to Detail
    • Understand what the client wants in a project
    • Be able to catch errors in a programming language's syntax
  • Patience
    • Find small errors in code
    • Read through a spec
    • Learn different languages
    • Think of a solution to a problem
  • Communication
    • Be able to work with others to finish a project/work in teams
    • Comment your code
    • Communicate your ideas with others
  • Ingenuity
    • Come up with efficient and logical solutions that will execute code as needed
  • Persistence
    • Take the time to read a project's spec thoroughly and be able to understand it fully
    • Debugging code is the most time-consuming process of programming

Interview with Jair Hinojosa, a fourth-year Computer Science major

Why is Computer Science Important?
Computer science is important because it facilitates the progress of a variety of other fields. For example, recent advances in machine learning have proven to be useful in cases ranging from the diagnosis of medical illnesses to the analysis of global markets.
Why did you choose Computer Science?
I chose computer science because I enjoyed the problems it presented and the thought that went into solving them. Moreover, I was always captivated by computers so programming seemed like a good way to indulge my curiosity.
How do you think Computer Science affects our daily lives?
Most notably, computer science has entirely changed the method with which we interact with the rest of the world. The action of communicating with people across the world has become as trivial as talking to anybody on the street.
What is your favorite language?
Python, it abstracts away a lot of syntactical complexity and allows the user to focus more on the actual algorithm.
Do you have any notable professional/research experience?
Last summer I worked at Lyft. It was a great experience to work on a product that is very widely used while having an affect on the company as a whole.
What has been your favorite project to work on?
While I was at Lyft I worked on a project relating to cost optimization. I enjoyed this project in particular because it was both impactful and technically challenging. By the end of the internship my work had helped save the company $600,000.