Ken Vu
Software Development Engineer
NeoBloom, Inc.
San Jose, CA USA
“Put aside what feels comfortable for others. Do what feels right for you.”
Milestones
My road in life took a while to figure out.
You must be content with loneliness and be happy with yourself. Your circumstances do not define your fate. If you can work independently and make decisions for yourself, you can defeat doubt.
Get involved in clubs and extracurricular activities. Not only do you meet new people, but you also develop people's skills that aren't commonly developed through a traditional classroom setting.
If you can, see if there's an on-campus job. Some of these jobs can lead to great rapport with others and potential for a recommendation for a higher level position.
If possible, once all your GE and major courses are done, see if you can have one semester where you just take classes for fun. This gives you a break from the stress of getting all major classes done
For any great new friends, teachers, and such you meet along the way, they'll likely appreciate it if you show appreciation for them, such as a thank you card. When done right, it builds rapport.
Keep following my journey
Education
High School
Mt. Pleasant High School
Mt. Pleasant High School
Career
Software Development Engineer
I design and maintain the back-end of the Faerly app, including web development and database management.
Career Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Education
Engineering
Helping People
Day to Day
First thing in the morning, I check emails and calendars for any alerts or updates for new or current projects. Then, I go down on my list of projects and go through them, which typically involves accessing databases and making spreadsheets (sometimes using coding to make it faster). I have weekly and monthly staff meetings where I stay updated on current issues and projects. I would take a one hour lunch break and resume work.
Advice for Getting Started
Here's the first step for college students
1. Continue to network, even on LinkedIn. Set up an account there completely and continue to post and reach out to other recruiters and professionals. You want to be able to have a wide variety of connections you could talk to for future reference. 2. Sometimes, you may need to take temporary jobs or jobs that don't quite relate to your major, but it's all to get your foot in the door. 3. Learn extra skills through outside reading or taking courses through Udemy and other online platforms.
Recommended Education
My career is related to what I studied. I'd recommend the path I took:
Hurdles
The Noise I Shed
From Peers:
"Be Computer Science, dude! You're wasting time being a math major. "
Challenges I Overcame
Learning Issues
