Important Notes/Lessons

When it comes to engineering, there is an extensive use of science, math, logic, and algorithms to solve problems
Engineering can change the world (and has a good salary!), which inspired Suma to pursue a career in that field (specifically electronics and communication)
There are a variety of streams you can take with engineering, such as biomedical, aerospace, software, electronics and communication, and many more
Suma’s very first job made her nervous at first, but over time, it became easier to mingle with the other students and share exepriences with one another
Qualcomm is a corporation that creates services related to networking and wireless technology
- Designs wireless telecommunications products
- Integrated GPUs
- Artifical intelligence products
- Inventors of CDM technology
- Wants to bring benefits of mobiles to other domains of engineering
- It is more than just sitting in front of a laptop!
- Volunteering + fun team activities
Nisha - director of engineering at Qualcomm
As a kid, Nisha was fascinated by how engineers made useful, innovative products
Fell in love with computer-related engineering because of how well she was doing in math in high school
Initially did not know what she was doing going into engineering
Excited to move to San Diego because that was a city where Qualcomm existed and where the headquarters of her team company were

Questions

How do you know what side of engineering you want to pursue (software, hardware, etc.)

Keep a growth mindest!
It is important to know what you love
It can be hard to know what your interests are, so it is a good idea to do some research and see what fields resonate the most with you
More exposure may allow you to narrow down some of the things that you like the most

What is the difference between software and hardware engineering?

Hardware - designs the electronics, develop chips using languages
Software - write the software for the electronics

What universities specialize in software engineering?

Most universities with engineering will have a software engineering field (i.e. cpmputer science)
In Calfiornia, we have many universities with great university programs

What are majors that would help me learn the necessary skills and concepts to get a software developer job in tech app companies?

Any tech company (Google, Amazon, Apple, etc.) looks for software engineers

What should I do in high school to increase my chances to get admitted into these universities?

Challenge yourself when you are in school
Go above and beyond, take honors classes
Take some community college classes in your junior and senior years of high school
Colleges look very closely at acadmeic rigor

What is one thing you wish you had done earlier that would have greatly helped you with engineering?

Take advantage of any programs that your school may have
This way, you will be better prepared for engineering

What were some of your biggest challenges and how did you handle them?

When Suma gave birth to her first kid, she had to focus on her kid
Difficult for her to balance between motherhood and work, but with time, she got better at it
Back then, one could not Google resources to help them with engineering

What are some competitions that I can participate in where I can apply what I have learned?

See if you can join the first Robotics program
Try to find a team in the community that you live in
Gaming companies in San Diego (i.e. Rocket League)

Personal Takeaways from the Event

After attending the event, I was really fascinated to listen to each of the engineers’ stories, as hearing them made me realize that the journey to become an engineer is a lot of work. I also liked hearing the speakers talk about Qualcomm, as personally, my dad has worked there as a software engineer for many years. Overall, this event has inspired me to possibly pursue a career in some type of engineering, as I know that there are many of opportunities for aspiring engineers like me.