Matthew Dupree, Computer Engineering

I’m from Half Moon Bay, near San Francisco, and when I visited UCSB, one of several colleges that accepted me, it felt like home. It was warm in terms of the people who were around. Our tour guide seemed happy to be here, and I liked the wide-open nature of campus.

My experience has included all sorts of challenging and developmental experiences. The College of Engineering has so many wonderful professors, plus visitors on sabbatical who have helped me understand things in new ways. And because UCSB is a top-tier research university, you have professors who really know their stuff and people from all over giving seminars on all the-cutting edge topics in the field. You can eat pizza for lunch and listen.

Our professors really push the boundaries. In ECE 156 AB, for example, the professor is teaching us to apply AI to designing computers. We’re trying to take segments of computer testing that require lots of people and time and turn them into programs that can come up with near optimal test suites.

I’ve found that the advisors are willing to really work to help you get places. I’ve been doing industry internships since I arrived. These past two years, the internships I got through the UCSB career fair have been paid.