I started this college journey at Kaua’i Communtiy College at the age of 16. From there, I was encouraged by my math teachers to study engineering, due to my talents in that area. On deciding what engineering I should go into, I chose Electrical because I wanted to make my own electronics products.
My very first semester had a programming class, EE 160. There, we learned C and that gave us the tools to venture off into other languages and adventures. However, after that, there wasn’t much programming (unless you count MATLAB).
Although I certainly do love hardware, I didn’t necessarily want to know all of the quantum mechanics of how a diode and transistor works. Although that is important, I really wanted to know how to design simple circuits and program microchips to control them (think Arduino realm). It became more apparant as I got deeper into the curriculum that there wasn’t going to be much programing and hardware / software integration. Despite wanting to learn more about electro-physics, it was pulling me away from the true hardware-software balance that I wanted.
So in Spring 2016, just one year away from graduation, I changed my major and opted for the newly created Computer Engineering degree (which had originally just been a subsection of Electrical Engineering). Now I could learn how to program PIC microcontrollers, Assembly language, C++, and even UNIX / LINUX systems.
I knew I had made the right choice when I would be getting the opportunity to take ICS courses, yet still learning about microprocessor architecture and interfacing those devices to standard hardware.
It has been a dream come true since the switch and I’m glad that I will be getting my degree in this new field.
But where will I go from here? What kind of job can I expect to get in Hawai’i?
Well, I don’t plan to go the traditional route. Most people invest in their careers and spend a long time working for a company 9-5. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. There are many good experiences that can come out of that. But for me, personally, I would like to start my own company and make products that benefit people worldwide.
I feel it’s a powerful thing when you can take a prototype from an idea in your head and make something tangible that people can enjoy. I have done it before.
I hope I am successful and I can meet some great mentors along the way. I know Hawai’i is not a world-renowed startup culture place, but I am looking to change that. I attend conferences such as East Meets West and am very active in the entrepreneurial community.
As Dr. Phillip Johnson once said, “You are the ones who are going to create either a positive future for Hawai’i, or a negative one”.