Patrick L.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to attend Amazon's WoW Career Spotlight and Interview Tips session, where I learned directly from professionals about what it’s like to interview and work in the tech industry! My Key Takeaways: 1. Have a plan with a clear objective so that there is something specific to work towards. 2. Use the STAR method to answer experience-related questions during an interview to effectively showing what was accomplished from start to finish. 3. Learn and be curious! Always strive to explore, and learn more to improve yourself. (One of Amazon's Leadership Principles) Thank you so much to Jordan Jones, M.S, CSM .., and the team for sharing their experiences! I'm excited to apply this new knowledge and hope to attend more events like this! 🙂 #Amazon #Interview #Tech #SoftwareEngineering #Workshop

49

13 Comments

💡 Ever wondered how a college could run a full accounting system without a web app, entirely on AWS? As part of my graduate coursework, we designed a cloud-native solution for a community college’s accounting system called “Show Me The Money”. Our architecture leveraged AWS EC2, RDS, DynamoDB, SQS, QuickSight, Databricks, and more to meet strict requirements for non-web desktop access, security, audit logging, and scalability. We presented the solution to a cohort of 39 peers as part of an academic kata in CS7346. 🔹 Full Project: GitHub : https://lnkd.in/dxddKAHe Alongside this, I completed hands-on labs from Chapters 2–11 of the AWS Certified Solutions Architect Study Guide (4th Ed), documenting each exercise with AWS Console screenshots., I completed hands-on labs from Chapters 2–11 of the AWS Certified Solutions Architect Study Guide (4th Ed), with console screenshots and documentation for each. 🔹 Labs Repo: GitHub : https://lnkd.in/dRyXrmGq #AWS #CloudComputing #ArchitectureDesign #DataEngineering #StudentProject #SMU

14

Applying to 1000 jobs won’t get you hired. Here is what will in 90 days ⬇️ Want a to land a software engineer / FAANG/ Tech role in 2025? Here’s the exact 90-day action plan! I know we have applied to thousands of roles and are still not moving forward to an interview or an offer. Here is a smart strategy to help you stand out. This is how it actually works:  1. Learn a language or tech stack deeply + AI Pick one: Python, Java, Go, or JavaScript (don’t try to learn everything at once). Pair it with a relevant framework (Spring Boot, React, Django, etc.) to make your projects job-ready. Get comfortable with AI tools (GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT, Claude, etc.) to speed up coding, debugging, and brainstorming — the smartest engineers are pairing strong fundamentals with AI efficiency. 2. Start building strong projects: Create at least one impactful project that showcases your skills. Post your projects on GitHub & LinkedIn to show real-world problem-solving skills. 2. Master data structures & algorithms (but don’t overdo it): Spend 2-3 hours daily on LeetCode or HackerRank. Focus on improving your problem-solving skills & learn to communicate your thought process clearly in interviews. 3. Revamp your resume & LinkedIn profile: Your resume should highlight impact, not just a task list. Add quantifiable achievements, skills, internships, and projects that showcase real skills. Create visibility by optimizing LinkedIn by starting to regularly post about your projects & learnings. 4. Network with purpose: Reach out to alumni and industry professionals for insights and career guidance. Engage in tech communities, virtual meetups, and LinkedIn webinars to build genuine connections. Be thoughtful when requesting referrals, focus on adding value and creating genuine connections, not just asking for help. 5. Practice mock interviews regularly: Set up weekly coding & system design interviews with peers or mentors. Prepare for behavioral interviews, your communication equally matters as much as your coding skills. Record your practice sessions to improve your responses. Finally, your action plan for the next 90 days: 🔎 Pick one major project to complete within the next 4-6 weeks. 🔎 Dedicate consistent daily time for coding, mock interviews, networking, and learning. 🔎 Keep applying strategically while improving your skills. The next 90 days can shape or break your career!! Show skills, show impact, and show up consistently. What is the first step you are taking today? 💻 Are you serious about landing your next tech offer in 2025 or becoming interview ready for SDE role? 🔹Join our 1:1 mentorship program Everyone Who Codes (EWC) has a simple mission: helping engineers get hired! 💼 Follow Lakshmi Marikumar for tech career & job search insights. #FAANG #techinterviewprep #FAANGMentors #mentorship #softwareengineer #softwaredeveloper #jobsearch #joboffer #hiring #careercoach #machinelearning #AI #systemdesign #roadmap #careerguidance #DSA #ML

159

23 Comments

Wrapping up my first semester at NYU 🎓 This semester was intense, technical, and extremely rewarding. It strengthened my foundations across computer architecture, networking, and machine learning, while pushing me to think deeply about systems, performance, and real-world tradeoffs. 1. Computer Systems Architecture This course provided a strong foundation in modern computing systems, especially in the context of domain-specific architectures and energy-efficient computing. We explored the evolution from Von Neumann architectures to modern RISC-based designs, with a deep dive into the RISC-V ISA (integer, floating-point, compressed, and vector extensions). As part of the coursework, I implemented a classic 5-stage RISC pipeline, analyzed pipeline hazards, control logic, and performance trade-offs, and compared pipelined vs. non-pipelined execution. The course also covered branch prediction, out-of-order execution, multi-core memory hierarchies, and architectural challenges posed by modern AI workloads. 2. Internet Architecture & Protocols This course combined theory with hands-on labs to explain how the Internet works end-to-end. We studied packet-switched networks across the Application, Transport, Network, and Data Link layers, and examined network interconnection using bridges, routers, and gateways. Key topics included Ethernet, PPP, IEEE 802.11, the Internet protocol suite (IP, ARP, ICMP, OSPF, BGP, UDP, TCP), and application-layer protocols such as HTTP, DNS, FTP, SMTP, and DHCP. Practical experiments using ping and traceroute helped solidify protocol behavior and real-world networking tradeoffs. 3. Machine Learning This course introduced core ML concepts across classification, regression, clustering, dimensionality reduction, and model selection, with strong emphasis on both theory and practice. We covered algorithms including linear and logistic regression, k-nearest neighbors, decision trees and ensembles, support vector machines, neural networks, and deep learning. Topics such as gradient descent, bias–variance tradeoff, regularization, hyperparameter optimization, and cross-validation were reinforced through hands-on work with real-world datasets spanning text, audio, and image domains. Later modules explored unsupervised learning, reinforcement learning, and deploying machine learning systems, with a focus on evaluating and validating model performance. Grateful for the guidance and mentorship of my professors • Computer Systems Architecture : Azeez Bhavnagarwala • Internet Architecture & Protocols : Z. John Zhao • Machine Learning: Fraida Fund These coursework significantly deepened my understanding of how these concepts operate in real systems.

127

2 Comments

Nobody talks about what the internship search actually looks like. So let me — and if you're hiring, stick around. It's 1 AM. I'm rewriting the same resume for the 25th time this semester. This one's for a cloud infrastructure role, so I'm leading with AWS and distributed systems. Yesterday's version led with React and TypeScript for a frontend-heavy position. Tomorrow I'll rearrange everything again for a GenAI role. Why? Because I actually care about showing up prepared. I don't mass-apply. I research the team, decode the JD, and map my experience to what actually matters for that role. I treat take-home assignments like production code. I prep for interviews the way I'd prep for a sprint — deep, focused, and thorough. Here's what I'm working with: → MS CS at Northeastern, 2+ years of industry experience → Building AI-powered tools end to end — React, TypeScript, Python, LLMs → Research assistant at an accessibility-focused lab, working on real AI systems → Previously shipped an AI platform that automated a 7-person team's workflow down to 2 To every grad student in the trenches — the hustle is real but so is the growth. Keep going. And to anyone hiring for Summer 2026 — I'd love to be the engineer who rewrites their resume at 1 AM just for your role. That's not desperation. That's dedication. Let's connect. #OpenToWork #SWEIntern #Summer2026 #SoftwareEngineering #Hiring #GradLife

71

December often marks graduation celebrations, but for many international students, it brings anxiety. As layoffs continue in the U.S. tech sector, thousands of international students graduating this December are left questioning, “Will I find a job before my OPT runs out?” For these graduates, a layoff is not just a career setback; it can threaten their entire future in the U.S. They offer global skills, resilience, and innovation. What they lack is not talent, but access. The solution lies in collaboration: - Employers should look beyond traditional hiring cycles. - Staffing partners need to create flexible, compliant pathways. - Students must explore alternative roles, industries, and visa options early. Talent should not be lost due to timing. This moment can be transformed into an opportunity for both businesses and global graduates. #InternationalStudents #TechLayoffs #OPT #GlobalTalent #USHiring #Staffing #Immigration #DecemberGraduates

6