College Experiences That Helped A Director Program Management And Product Strategy Operations At Turnitin Succeed
Kevin's Washington University experience, marked by diverse academic pursuits including education and business, and involvement in student groups, fostered "mental models" and exposure to leading researchers that shaped their career path in education and business. This broad academic exploration, coupled with engaging with "really great people," proved invaluable in developing the skills and perspectives that inform their current role at Turnitin.
Career Exploration, Project Management, Communication, Teamwork, Leadership
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Kevin Tsay
Director, Program Management & Product Strategy Operations
Turnitin
Washington University in St. Louis, 2007
Duke University Sanford School of Public Policy, MPP
Education
Technology
Operations and Project Management
LGBTQ
Video Highlights
1. Explore diverse academic interests to discover passions and potential career paths.
2. Engage in extracurricular activities and student groups to build skills and network.
3. Develop strong critical thinking and problem-solving abilities through academic pursuits and diverse conversations.
Transcript
Kevin, taking you back to your time at Washington University. What did you do in undergrad that set you up for success in your career?
At WashU and Saint Louis, I was surrounded by really great people, which was definitely helpful. For me, a lot of that also involved immersing myself in academic interests.
I'm one of those people who studied education and business. I was really lucky while I was there, partly because of the diversity of academic pursuits. I explored architecture and thought about psychology and philosophy, almost minoring in that.
Being able to consider my interests and having that community, both academically and through student groups, allowed me to work on a variety of cool things. Years later, I still find myself in education and business, which I didn't necessarily expect.
This is also informed by a career where I've had the fortune of experiencing so many different things across sectors. Those conversations, even in the dorms at WashU, helped me think in different ways that have carried throughout my career.
I feel really lucky that I had those opportunities to pursue my interests and really understand them. Years later, I have some of those mental models and have been exposed to research, and have had conversations with leading experts in their fields. This has helped me think about this work in ways that really interest me for the kind of impact I like to make.