College Experiences That Helped a Site Reliability Manager at Google Succeed
David's undergraduate success stemmed from engaging with professors during upper-division classes, leading to exposure to "research and collaborations with industry." This early exploration of diverse software applications, rather than hyper-specialization, fostered a flexible career path that David credits to "professors that gave the opportunity to sort of look in on that and realize it."
Career Exploration, Networking, Collaboration, Adaptability, Problem-Solving
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
David Fayram
Site Reliability Manager
University of California, Santa Barbara
None
Computer Science
Energy & Utilities, Technology, Advertising, Communications & Marketing
Cyber Security and IT
Took Out Loans, Worked 20+ Hours in School, LGBTQ
Video Highlights
1. Meet with professors to explore various career paths and research opportunities.
2. Consider internships or collaborations with industry to gain practical experience.
3. Develop flexibility and adaptability to work on diverse software projects, rather than specializing too early.
Transcript
College ideas for success.
What did you do in undergrad to set you up for success in your career?
I had a hard time picking what I wanted to do outside of my degree. I knew I wanted to work in computers since I was a child. I think what really exposed me to the idea that there was lots to do was meeting with many of my professors during upper-division classes.
They were really receptive to me helping them. I thought I wanted to go into grad school, but I ended up not being able to for financial reasons. However, they exposed me to all sorts of research and collaborations with industry.
By exposing me to that early on, I realized that you could pursue different paths and be a flexible person who specializes in doing things with software, rather than focusing on a minuscule aspect of it. I'm really thankful to the professors who gave me the opportunity to see that.
I think it helped my career a lot in the long run, even if it was overwhelming at first.