Photo Credit: Lehigh University University Productions Creative Inquiry Photography Team

• Fall 2021

  Enrolled into Lehigh University as a Computer Science and Business Major

  Applied and Received offer for first work-study jobs: Student Web Developer for Web & Mobile Services at Lehigh Technology Services and Tutor for Broughal Middle School with America Reads Community Service Office

  Career Aspiration: K-12 Computer Science Teacher

• Spring 2022

  Took on another work study job as a note-taker for extra income

  Career Aspiration: K-12 Computer Science Teacher

• Fall 2022

  Quit note-taking and tutoring work study to focus more on academics as I was working nearly 20 hours a week (underestimated academic rigor)

  Took on Ignite Fellowship Tutoring to supplement income while working less hours.

  Career Aspiration: K-12 Computer Science Teacher

• Spring 2023

  Went through my toughest academic semester and lowered hours on work study.

  Applied and received a teaching fellowship offer: Breakthrough Collaborative.

  Career Aspiration: K-12 Computer Science Teacher

• Summer 2023

  Enrolled in CodePath TIP Intermediate to work on Data Structures and Algorithms for upcoming internship season.

  Taught Algebra 1 for rising 9th graders, working 60 hours a week and realized that the job is unsustainable.

  Career Aspiration: Any tech job

• Fall 2023

  Started angelacui.com

  Locked in for junior semester while taking some of my favorite CS courses (Databases and Software Engineering during my Lehigh Education.

  Applied to 150+ internship roles across various tech roles.

  Career Aspiration: Full Stack Engineer

• Spring 2024

  Started senior capstone with Digiclips Inc.

  Received offer for Liberty Mutual Insurance and started interning in their Seattle office while learning completely new programming languages.

  Career Aspiration: Any tech role

• Summer 2024

  Gained exposure to AWS, TypeScript, and Jest through Liberty Mutual Insurance Tech Start Internship!

  Career Aspiration: QA Engineer, Test Engineer, or Cloud Engineer

• Fall 2024

  Successfully wrapped up senior capstone with Digiclips Inc, assisting their prototype with an AI-backed speech-to-text transcription software.

  Made the Dean’s List for the first time!

  Received and accepted return offer for Full-Time Tech Start program with Liberty Mutual Insurance at their HQ in Boston.

  Accepted to Lehigh in Silicon Valley Winter Program to gain real-world exposure to entrepreneurship.

  Career Aspiration: Software Engineer

• Winter 2025

  Flew to the Bay Area to visit award winning CEOs and Founders of fast-growing startups and venture capital firms.

  Career Aspiration: Software Engineer + Entrepreneur

• Spring 2025

  Successfully completed Business capstone: Strategic Management by completing 1st in a computer startup simulator.

  Made the Dean’s List again; ending strong!

  Graduated from Lehigh University with a Bachelors of Science in Computer Science and Business!

  Career Aspiration: Solutions Architect + Financial Freedom

• Summer 2025

  Yet to come…

Breaking Barriers in Tech Through Story and Code

By: Angela Cui

Graduating with a Computer Science and Business degree was difficult, but breaking into the tech industry as a non-target-CS school student doesn’t have to be hard for everyone.

Being the first in my family to attend and graduate from a 4-year university and the first in my even extended family to break into tech, I didn’t know how tough the job market was going to be until junior year. No one knew about Software Engineering, no one understood the tech lingo I was talking about, people only knew about the big tech layoffs and unemployment issues. With no foundation regarding the job market, my support came from my friends and peers.

I remember applying to around 150 internship roles during my junior year to land my internship with Liberty Mutual Insurance with no prior software engineering internship experience. By December, I was burnt out, sick of studying for exams and interviews at the same time, and ready for winter break. I was so used to getting the first job I applied for when I was applying for teaching roles, (Just to provide some context, I pivoted from wanting to become a K-12 Computer Science Teacher to Software Engineering due to the financial instability of being a K-12 educator in this day and age, so much of my underclassmen work experiences were closer to teaching.) I was not used to receiving so many rejections. I was lost, dazed, and confused.

But on January 2nd, a Christmas/New Years miracle hit. I received my first and only internship offer with Liberty Mutual Insurance in their Seattle office.

Looking back, I could’ve taken the internship search process differently. I could have cold-applied to less internships, narrowed in on the job I wanted, and networked more and earlier on.

So, I share my personal experiences and projects in hopes to help someone like younger self, an aspiring Software Engineer, in this tough tech job market.

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Reading List

So now you know about me.

Here are some blogs to read to gain some tips or just read about my experience: