Seidenberg School News – Page 43 – Events and Announcements

Student Profile: Grad student Srikanth Bandaru, Co-Founder of Color Layers

Meet Srikanth Bandaru. He’s a tall, talented techie, and an entrepreneur. He’s currently pursuing his Master’s in Computer Science degree at the Seidenberg School, Pace University, in New York. Take it away, Srikanth…

Like many teenagers who dream of making it big, my dream was to become an engineer. I attended university back in India, and loved tinkering around with computers and the Internet. The subjects I chose exposed me to a variety of programming languages, which, mind you, I picked up faster than the English language! During my second year at university I signed up for a national level technical conference and won first prize – before I knew it, I was developing websites for every department on campus!

I co-founded my web development company, Color Layers, the very next year. We help clients bring their ideas to life through design-oriented solutions. I work as a web strategy consultant and specialize in front-end development. I focus on solving clients’ problems with technology. To be honest, I never dreamt of how big we were going to be, but I knew we were onto something.

Last year, I decided to do my masters so I could expand my horizons and enhance my personal development. My driving force is to increase the reasoning powers of intelligent agents to improve the way an interface agent interacts with its environment. I am particularly excited about the fields of quantum computing, big data and network security. So that’s reason enough to do this, right? RIGHT?

But… why NYC? Why Pace?

Getting accepted is a great feeling. Getting accepted by your first choice – that puts you over the moon! But let’s be realistic – you have to apply to more than one! The novelty wears of the minute you see the tuition bill! College education comes with a cost. So I had to really debate the idea with my parents. Though I did receive a scholarship to attend Pace, I still wasn’t 100% ready. The next step I took was doing A LOT of research. I looked at a bunch of videos, Tumblr accounts and websites just to get an idea of the campus life at all the universities. Not only were academics one of the most important aspects in making my decision, the culture of campus life and the location mattered as well.

Long story short, these were the main aspects of Pace that won me over in the end:

Outstanding academics overall
Personable, incredibly intelligent professors
So many opportunities in terms of networking/internships/job experience for students (which makes it worth the investment)
Students from all over the world (I love meeting new people from different cultures)
Extracurricular, volunteer, and internship opportunities – more than you can count in one sitting
Beautiful campus (The city is our campus and yeah, NYC IS BEAUTIFUL)

There’s always a bit of uncertainty that comes along with every big decision. But now that I’m in NYC and have started at Seidenberg, I know I’ve made one of the best decisions of my life. I could talk about it all day… but for now…

Peace out everyone!

— Srikanth Bandaru

Remember, Remember, 5 Things for September

In just 5 days the Fall semester here at Pace will begin (as surely you have all realized by now. We hope). As usual, we don’t hesitate to get the motors running with the semester’s start. For example, here are 5 big things already happening in September that we think will fuel your engines for Fall 2014.

WriteSpeakCode

1. September 13th – Write/Speak/Code

Our friends at Write/Speak/Code will be hosting a free, full-day, intensive developer’s workshop for women. The workshop will offer a chance for women to work in tandem to learn, practice, or improve upon their skills in software development. Not only will women be able to level-up their expertise, but the workshop is a great way to network with other developers in the field. Registration is open now, and the event includes breakfast and lunch, if you weren’t already convinced.

2. September 10th & 17th – Student Panel

Assuming this year is like any other, a great many of you are possibly in the midst of a stressful, agonizing job search. If you’re tired of being inexperienced (or just plain broke), Seidenberg will be hosting two student panels focusing on how panelists found their summer’s jobs or internships. The two days will be split between undergrad (17th) and graduate (10th) panelists. For information on the dates, keep up with Seidenberg’s Twitter or Facebook feed, where we’ll be announcing information as we receive it and posting reminders for your convenience.

3. September 18th – AgileDay NYC

The 5th annual Agile Day will once again be happening here at Pace University. The event consists of talks from various Agile front runners, with topics such as ‘Innovation in a Rapidly Changing World,’ and ‘Developing Product Developers and Product Ownership.’ Once the talks finish, the entire Student Union will open up to host workshops and activities to promote Agile ideologies and networking within the expected crowd of 350+ agile professionals. Registration is ongoing and filling up fast, so take a look at reserving a spot. Or, as admission can be pricey on a student’s budget, we are offering a number of volunteer spots. Volunteers will be able to attend the event for free; those interested in volunteering should email Wilfredo Pena at wpena@pace.edu.

4. September 25th – UX Agency Launch

Seidenberg students Stas Vaisman and Adil Hasan are building up a UX agency that will be launching this fall. Their goal is to gather a team of students from a multitude of disciplines (Hey, Dyson! Hey, Lubin!) who will ultimately work with Seidenberg Creative Labs to enhance UX on various platforms. UX – User Experience – is rapidly emerging as a career field, focusing on all aspects surrounding product development (especially in start ups). The agency, also known as Schooled, has connections to a university in Germany, offering students who join a chance to build their own international network while gaining real-world experience. On the 25th at 6pm (Bianco Room, One Pace Plaza), Vaisman and Hasan will be fully explaining their initiative to anyone interested in joining. No reservations are required and free pizza will be served as bait!

5. September 20-21st – DroidCon 2014

For all you Android enthusiasts, DroidCon is definitely going to be worth your while. This event will be the “world’s biggest, community-driven, Android developer conference,” according to the DroidCon home page. As an international conference, you’ll have a chance to learn about Android advances from the farthest corners of the world. DroidCon has also officially announced its t op-10 speakers for the event, boasting an impressive host of professionals in the Android community. Registration for the conference lasts until the 19th. Tickets start at 100$, but of course we have your backs with free volunteer positions at the event. Those interested in attending DroidCon for free as a volunteer should email Dr. Christelle Scharff at cscharff@pace.edu.

Pace University’s STEM Collaboratory Camp 2014

Last month twenty high school students from across the five boroughs embarked on a summer STEM adventure as part of Pace University’s STEM Collaboratory Camp, a collaboration of Pace and AT&T. For two weeks they learned and experimented with coding, robotics, Cybersecurity, Design Thinking and scientific research processes, among other skills. Then, they began to put their skills to work.

On August 1^st, 2014 the camp culminated with students formally presenting their very own Cybersecurity mobile apps.

Special guests included Elizabeth Segal from AT&T, Kelli Kedis Ogborn from DARPA Legislative Affairs – Spire Communications, and Brook Gesser from U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand’s Office.

Members of the media were invited to attend the graduation reception.

To view the work done by each team, simply click on the links below.

Team Cybot comprising of Jacob Sadeh, Lary Toyter, Maryia Spirydonava, and Mariah Torcivia presented their app, Cyber Triv — an app that raises awareness about Cybersecurity.

Team FoCS (aka FOX), comprising of Nicholas Austin, Sole Stewart, Loreen Chan, and Christopher Boyce, created WE-FE — an app that allows you to monitor who’s on your Wi-Fi and take appropriate action.

Team Rocket, comprising of Kemar Dudley, David Lebron, Summer Carrio, and Dishan Win, created the app Secure-IT — an app that shows you just how secure you are online.

Team Phisher comprising of Iya Hawkins, Anthony Agbofoati, Anastasiya Malinouskaya, Jeremy End invented Phisher — an app that allows you find all your old posts … and have a good long think!

–For more pictures and videos from STEM Camp, follow us on Facebook.

Suhail Bhandari

Julie’s spending this summer hacking into New York’s real estate market with RentHackr!

1. You work for Renthackr – any tips for incoming Pace students looking to rent in the fall?

USE RENTHACKR! Even just for curiosity’s sake. You can get some insider tips on buildings in the area, see where your Facebook friends live, and get an idea of how expensive rent really is. We also just added a “find by room” feature so you can find a room and skip out on some of the apartment hunting drama.

2. Could you tell us (briefly) what you’re working on this summer?

I’m one of two interns, and we are essentially the engineering team right now. Renthackr is built with Ruby on Rails primarily, and I’m really polishing my Ruby skills. I also have the pleasure of being in charge of the analytics of the site, so I’m getting to take the data from Ruby to D3.js graphs. It’s really fun getting to learn how to work with the full stack through challenges fixing up the existing application.

3. The work you’re doing right now… do you think there’s a particular subject you took last semester that’s helping you? Or a particular Professor who’s teachings deserve a shout out?

Dr. Wolf’s class on Ruby on Rails gave me a good foundation, and showed me what I’d be up against in the web development world. Dr. Scharff’s Programming Languages and Implementations class also has been an amazing help in my process of learning Ruby inside and out. I understand different datatypes better, and know where to look in the language to work out logic problems.

4. How does the co-working space at WeWork differ from the co-working space at Pace, Seidenberg? (Warning: Just checking to see where your loyalties lie)

WeWork is beautiful. So is Seidenberg. But WeWork is really a coworking space to be reckoned with. The design of the whole space is very welcoming and beautiful. The view from my desk couldn’t be better. Seidenberg has a great video game set-up, but so does WeWork to be honest. However, a whole lot more collaboration and teaching goes on at Seidenberg. A lot more work gets done at WeWork.

Julie Gauthier is an undergrad student at the Seidenberg School, majoring in computer science. She’s also the student manger at Seidenberg’s Creative Labs, overseeing tech projects from concept to completion, and happens to be the biggest fan of Dubstep DJ, Skrillex.

Sabiya’s spending her summer interning at IBM, New York.

1. Who are you working with this summer (… and what do they do?)

Securing a paid summer internship is easier said than done. Luckily for me, I landed an exceptional opportunity with one of the largest computer companies in the world, IBM. IBM is a multinational technology and consulting corporation that offers a wide range of products and services.

2. Can you tell us a little about what you are doing? (We might not understand the technicalities, but we’d love details!)

My four-month internship this summer revolves around the Security Intelligence Software Group that focuses on QRadar Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) products. QRadar SIEM provides solutions that give security analysts the visibility they need to protect their networks. In addition, it provides reliable tamper proof log storage for forensic investigations and evidence use. In fact, just recently IBM’s Security QRadar product was recognized as number one by the 2014 Gartner SIEM Quadrant, topping other companies like HP and McAfee!

The really awesome aspect of my internship is that I work remotely, which means I can work from wherever I want, including my own home! My internship is divided into two parts. The first includes learning about QRadar SIEM product by attending QRadar classes online, reviewing manuals, completing labs, and familiarizing myself with information technology concepts and terminology. The second part involves me shadowing my coworkers out in the field as they deploy new systems, upgrade existing systems or do health checks to improve/fix existing systems for our clients. I am scheduled to do my first visit next week. I will shadow one of the senior consultants as he deploys a new system for Harley Davidson in Milwaukee Wisconsin.

3. Is there a particular class or professor at Seidenberg that has helped you prepare specifically for your current internship? (Clearly, we’re all about shout outs this summer!)

My boss was excited to know that I was taking Fundamentals of Unix and C Programming (CS 271).

4. Does your new office have a favorite restaurant/hangout they go to after work? (No! we’re not going to show up like proud parents!)

I work from home. I just moved to East Harlem so I am still exploring the restaurants around my apartment.

5. Does working at IBM live up to the hype? Like Google or Microsoft?

After visiting the offices of IBM, Google and Microsoft, I think they each have different cultures. I work from the comfort of my home (and it does not get any better than that). It’s pretty awesome not having to worry about catching or missing trains and dealing with unpleasant people face to face. I enjoy rolling out of my bed 10 minutes before I start work.

6. Any advice for the Seidenberg community?

This experience will help sharpen my communication and professionalism skills, expose me to the corporate world, and provide me with a wealth of knowledge and new talents.

Before I applied to IBM, I thought I was not good enough for them. However, here I am as their intern. My advice to everyone out there is stop being your worst antagonist. In fact, throw yourself into different situations and work hard to achieve the best possible outcomes. That way you will learn from every opportunity and you will be closer to success.

Working from the comfort of my home, not having to deal with transportation, obtaining a wealth of knowledge and getting paid—-nothing can beat that. IBM is awesome!

Sabiya Bacchus is in the penultimate year of a bachelors in Computer Science degree at the Seidenberg School. She’s also associated with the Pforzheimer Honors College, at Pace University.

Cynthia’s spending her summer tracking down cyber-crime for the US Department of Justice.

1. Who are you working with this summer?

I am working for the US Department of Justice in the Criminal Division. Their purpose is to investigate and prosecute crimes on a federal level.

2. Can you tell us a little about what you are doing?

My title is actually fancier than my job. I am called a high tech intern within the investigative unit. Basically I am working on various projects that involve computer forensics and their role in cyber crimes.

3. Is there a particular class or professor at Seidenberg that has helped you prepare for your current role?

I think my computer forensics class with Professor Watkins was most helpful. He taught us the technical terms I would need to know, the importance of data integrity and even report writing. Each of these aspects play a vital role in my job this summer.

4. Does your new office have a favorite restaurant/hangout they go to after work?

The other interns and I get together with the employees and do some bar trivia at a local spot. It’s a good way to unwind and get to know each other on a different level.

By day, Cynthia Shaw is an undergrad student at the Seidenberg School, majoring in information technology. By night, she’s a super hero that fights cyber-crime! Cynthia currently attends school at Pace University’s rather picturesque Pleasantville campus.