NCCC Success Story

Hometown
Omaha, Nebraska

Degree programs
B.S. Computer Science with a minor in Writing Studies

Year of graduation
2014

Place of employment
NASA, Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida

Job Title
Software Engineer Intern (10-week internship)

Work Responsibilities
I developed a script generator application in collaboration with another intern to graph data and measurements for the Orion spacecraft. We used C++, SQLite, and Dewesoft to support testing for Orion Exploration Flight Test One, scheduled to launch in September 2014.

I traveled to the top of the Vehicle Assembly Building, one of the largest buildings in the world by volume, to help NASA track a balloon experiment designed to test the effects of the upper atmosphere on microbes. I also helped other interns edit their project reports, and learned about telemetry, which is the transmission of data from a moving aircraft or spacecraft to the ground.

How my career relates to my degree from RIT/NTID
RIT/NTID helped me develop not only software engineering and programming skills, but also communication and teamwork skills that were instrumental in my success as a profoundly deaf employee at NASA. The writing and reading skills I developed at RIT were essential to my success on the job. The Orion Scripted Interface Generator (OrionSIG) project where I worked held just the right amount of challenge for me. I applied advanced thinking and problem-solving that I developed at RIT. I feel like the Computer Science courses, especially those related to mathematics and data, prepared me very well for the work at NASA.

I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to study Computer Science at RIT because my major taught me many of the best ways to develop software that can help people with everything from solving complex problems to performing manual tasks and saving large amounts of time. The OrionSIG project at NASA achieved these goals and I will be excited to work as a software engineer after I graduate, whether at NASA or somewhere else.

Advice
Please do not be afraid to ask for help. Visit tutors, your professors' office hours, and do whatever else you can to succeed academically. Many employers are looking for leadership and "people" skills, so build a strong resume with on-campus involvement and community service.