Nynika Badam

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Major:
Computer Engineering

Year:
Freshman

Hometown:
Aurora, IL

Other extracurricular activities:

  • Society of Women Engineers (SWE)
  • Women in Electrical and Computer Engineering (WECE)

Research/Internship/Co-op experience:

  • IBM-ILLINOIS Center for Cognitive Computing Systems Research (C3SR)
    Web Development Assistant
    (Present)

Why Illinois?

Illinois has an amazing engineering program with top tier facilities so I knew I'd be getting the best education for my major.

What has been your best experience at Illinois?

Since I'm only a freshman online I haven't had the full Illinois experience but some of favorite experiences have been meeting new people and trying out all the awesome restaurants on Green Street!

Favorite part about being an engineering student?

So far, it's being able to learn such interesting topics even though they can be challenging.

Why did you join EA?

One of my favorite activities in high school was STEM outreach so I wanted to make sure I'd still be able to do that in college. EA also has amazing opportunities for professional development so it was a perfect fit.

What advice would you give to someone interested in pursuing a STEM degree?

Don't ever doubt that you don't belong in your major!! Imposter syndrome is everywhere but don't ever let yourself think that you don't deserve to be where you are or that you're not capable of success.

What do you plan on doing post-graduation?

No solid plans yet but I'd love to use my Computer Engineering degree to contribute to a company in sustainability.