Student Experiences

I love the major. It's relatively small, so I know everyone in all of my classes. I have all the same professors for most of my classes, and it's nice to have a consistent classroom environment. With the Upside-Down Curriculum, I was engaged in my major from the start of my first semester.

One project I worked on in my Advanced Data Analytics class analyzed how names are pronounced. With that information, we generated a list of believable and pronounceable names. I found this particularly rewarding because I was able to use my knowledge from the class to make a practical application using our data.

I was an Assistant Data Analyst for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) in their Office of Performance Management & Innovation. My classes prepared me for this experience because the problems I tackled at my internship were similar to ones I'd already faced in the classroom. This internship will give me a competitive advantage when I graduate, because now I have experience dealing with real-world problems in a professional working environment.

Overall, I'd say the combination of class experience, work experience, and independent life has really helped me to be ready for what comes next, however that may look or wherever that may be. Watching upperclassmen move forward in their own careers encourages me for when it will be my turn to inspire those coming in after me. I feel a lot more confident knowing that people in the same place and from the same program have graduated to do great things and be successful in all walks of life.

It was fascinating to be in core classes where I was surrounded by so many people of different backgrounds and beliefs. The classes I took did not shy away from the more sensitive topics, but dove right in to examine them while at the same time making it clear that no matter what our views were, each of us was accepted within the class.

Do it. I applied to Champlain on a whim, never having heard of it before. I visited once at admitted student's day and now I'm going into my third year. I love the small size and the tight-knit community, the closeness of all the buildings and the friendliness of all the instructors. There's a good variety of people on campus and an equally good variety of programs for those who want to branch out. I'm really happy here, and I'm very blessed to have found a place like this.

I think the most valuable and enjoyable part for me has been learning how to use graphing and prediction software to analyze different datasets. My class projects have been the most rewarding, analyzing everything from Chipotle sales to sports statistics.

At the Emergent Media Center, I worked alongside a team of other interns to research, develop, and present our findings on emerging technologies. The topics I learned about in class served as a base for me to build on during my internship experience, which also made it easy to bring the skills I learned in my internship back to class. Because of this internship, I have a fuller résumé, and I already have experience in the workforce, which will put me a step above other applicants.

I participate in Climb Champlain, our rock climbing club. I enjoy it a lot because it's a fun, full-body workout, and it fits nicely into my schedule.

I've worked at the SMART Space as a programming lab tutor, and as a Peer Career Coach in the Career Collaborative. As a tutor, I learned how to break down complex topics for students to fill in the gaps in their knowledge. As a Peer Coach, I've learned what it means to be successful in the workplace and how to best work with students in a one-on-one environment. Both roles have helped me further develop social skills, and I can confidently say that I wouldn't be half as prepared as I am to start my career without them.

I was a Software Engineering Intern for NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York. I worked with a team of interns, researchers, and software engineers to develop an application for the researchers. We were able to modernize some of the data extraction tools they used. I had the opportunity to present my project at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland with the other interns, and we got a tour of some of the facilities. It was a fantastic experience, and gave me a competitive advantage when it came to securing my post-graduation job.

I came to Champlain with little to no programming experience, and I leave with enough experience to feel comfortable working at any company on anything related to software development. After graduation, I will be working for Amazon as a Software Development Engineer in Seattle. Ideally, I'd love to obtain a Master's degree in Computer Science or Data Science, but my life goal is to write software to help put humans on Mars.

The Upside-Down Curriculum helped me realize that Game Programming wasn't for me, but I knew I wanted to stay at Champlain because of the small classes and few tests. Dean Lawson—my advisor—and Wei Chan, the Assistant Dean for the division, suggested Data Analytics* because it was the mix of business and computer science that I wanted.

*Program name changed to Data Science for Fall 2020

I love the puzzle of working with different datasets. Each one has a question to answer, and it's a fun adventure to figure out if the data answers or doesn't answer that question. I've also loved all my classes with Narine Hall, because she is so willing to change up the class pacing based on how well we understand the material.

Yes. A lot of the master's degrees that I was looking at seem to overlap a lot with the work that I was doing already in my classes. So yes, I do feel prepared for going out into the workforce.

The Core Curriculum opened my eyes to how intricately the world is connected. A small change in one community can have a big impact on another. It has made me more self-aware of how my actions can impact the people around me and the world as a whole.

Every programming project I've had since the beginning of my college experience has been rewarding. From the simple projects in Introduction to Programming to my Capstone, they have all been the perfect learning experiences and helped me steadily progress towards my career.

I was a programming intern, so I worked with a small team on a web-based project called Digital Signage, which was going to be used as a CMS billboard system. This gave me the opportunity to work on a software development team as well as gain valuable knowledge of web-based projects. This internship led to an opportunity to work at The Leahy Center every semester since, and to grow as a software engineer by working on projects in a professional environment.

CIE is a growing community of entrepreneurs. The program offers the ability to collaborate with other like-minded individuals on campus and provide a space for them to work together. At least once a month, a guest speaker—usually a business owner from the Burlington area—will come to talk about their experience in the field of entrepreneurism. 

CIE also hosts events such as the Elevator Pitch and the Champlain branch of LaunchVT.

An entrepreneurial mind-set does not necessarily mean you need to go out, abandon your career, and start a business. The mind-set of an entrepreneur can be utilized in a corporate setting just as much as in your own startup. Entrepreneurism within a company is often referred to as "intrapreneurism," and it's just as valuable a skill.

I have had three internships over the last three years. My first was as a Research Assistant at the Leahy Center for Digital Investigation. Next, I worked as a software engineer for a small web firm out of Easthampton, Massachusetts. Most recently, I worked as a Security Engineer for Workday, located in Pleasanton, California.

I am a big believer that it takes time within an industry to learn the intricacies of running a business. All three of my internships taught me different ways of building a successful business.

I attended the Cybersecurity & Digital Forensics Summer Academy before coming to college, and that gave me a lot of hands-on experience and allowed me to work for a few weeks in the Leahy Center for Digital Investigation before I was even a Champlain student. I met some professors I'm still close with, and having that kind of encouragement gave me the push I needed to pick a career path that wasn't necessarily in the plan.

I decided to declare in Cybersecurity because that's what I enjoyed the most at the Summer Academy, and then I decided to add Digital Forensics. I knew it would be a lot more work, but I like being busy.

Yes! I studied abroad in Dublin, Ireland. We lived in a neighborhood called the Liberties. The great thing about living there is that you don't feel like a tourist. You get connected right away to the local community, and you realize that there are people living their lives there. Shopping at the local shops and staying away from the big grocery stores is very important because it allows you to get to know people in the community.

I did Cisco Networking for three years in high school and I liked it a lot, so I knew I wanted to continue learning about it. Since I knew what I wanted to do from the start, the Upside-Down Curriculum was very helpful in confirming that the Computer Networking & Cybersecurity program was where I wanted to be.

I've been an officer in the Womxn in Technology club for the past two years, and an officer in the Cybersecurity Club for a year. I've also been in the Digital Forensics Association for two years. I enjoy these clubs because you can come together with your friends and classmates to learn something that you may not discuss in classes.

From the InSight curriculum to all my tech classes, I feel prepared to be out in the real world because I've been given so many opportunities for success. All of the professors here want to help you succeed in classes and in the rest of your career.

I started attending the Womxn in Tech club in my first couple of weeks here at Champlain, and it was a really welcoming community. I wanted to grow that community, and I think we've done that. There's a big gender gap in the tech field, and I want to improve that by reaching out to younger people and making the community more welcoming to women, people of color, and non-binary folks. We've increased attendance and are getting more women and young girls involved in Cybersecurity, which is really important to me.

I'm part of the technical team for Techdren, a nonprofit started by Champlain students a few years ago that is centered around empowering women and giving students access to technology around the world. I've been helping to repair laptops we've received through donations, and installing educational software that tailors to whatever community we're giving them to. This past January, I went on a trip to Zanzibar to deliver the laptops to schools and teach the students and teachers how to use them. It was a great and humbling experience, getting to see first-hand how technology can impact their lives and hopefully their future career prospects.

For my first internship, I worked at a pharmaceutical company as a technical intern, which was a really great experience. At the end of my sophomore year, I already had two years of major-related classes under my belt, which is not the case for a lot of other schools. After that, I interned at a cybersecurity company in California doing work on their firewalls. That actually turned into a full time position, so I'll be working there as an Associate Systems Engineer after graduation.

I chose Champlain because of the Digital Forensics major, which interested me more than anything else I'd seen at other schools. I've always been interested in computers, and since I want to go into law enforcement after college, Computer & Digital Forensics was the logical move to make. I like Champlain's program because I get to take my major-specific classes early with the Upside-Down Curriculum. I wanted to go to one of the best schools in the country for my degree.

My major-specific classes and professors give me hands-on experience with topics I'll need when I enter the field. I've already done practical reports in my cybercrime, forensic science, and digital forensics classes. Instead of just hearing about methods and ideas, I'm actually applying them.

The University of Vermont's United States Army ROTC hosts students from other area schools, such as Champlain. The partnership allows us to participate in the program and experience a lot of interesting classes and hands-on training. It also provides great scholarship opportunities. I get to do a lot of things most other college students won't ever do, and I have the opportunity to serve my country in the military when I graduate.