ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT: MEGHNA K
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA-CHAMPAIGN COMPUTER SCIENCE STUDENT
2023 INSTRUCTOR
2018 STUDENT (SMART ARM BRACER PROJECT)
Today’s alumni spotlight is on Meghna, who attended BlueStamp as a student in 2018 and returned as an instructor in 2023. After her time at BlueStamp as a student, she founded her school’s Arduino club and went on to attend the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to study computer science. Check out her portfolio as a student here, and read on to learn more about her experience as both a student and instructor!
What was your BlueStamp project?
My project was a smart arm bracer which is like a prototype Apple Watch. I used an Arduino hooked up to a ton of different sensors. Each button would control a different sensor, and you would output the sensor data onto an OLED screen for visibility and beauty.
How did BlueStamp shaped your college experience?
It definitely made me a lot more college ready in that I learned no matter what challenges are thrown my way, I can definitely overcome them. I really learned the entire troubleshooting process.
I used to get frustrated pretty easily when things wouldn’t work out on the first try, but BlueStamp taught me that perseverance is really what makes a good engineer. If you don’t have that, it’s hard to get anywhere if you give up quickly. That life lesson really stuck with me, so no matter what challenges are in a project or even in my life, I know I have to stick it through and see it until the end. This was a really important mindset that BlueStamp helped me achieve.
Why did you decide to return to BlueStamp as an instructor?
I really liked the BlueStamp program- it was really important in my career in understanding what I want to do and what direction of computer science I want to go in. I thought it would be a great experience to give back what I’ve learned to new students… it’s really exciting because they don’t know what they’re interested in, and they don’t know what direction they want to go in. Being able to help them figure that out and help them learn is something that I really enjoy.
What do you think were the most important things you learned as a BlueStamp student?
Coming into BlueStamp, I had a little bit of coding experience, but it was basically pure coding. It was really important for me to go through the design process and understand how a product really starts from the skeleton and how to build it up. It also taught me a lot of really important troubleshooting processes because before [when] I was only coding, I never had to deal with wires or sensors or things like that.
On the other side, what was the most important thing you learned as a BlueStamp instructor?
I think it was really exciting to see students learn. When you’re really deep into your career or college or learning, you forget what it’s like to discover everything for the first time.
Seeing it for the first time on their faces, their first ‘aha moment,’ I think it really inspired me keep going on in my career and renewed passion for what I’m doing.
What’s one piece of advice you’d give to BlueStamp students?
When you hit a roadblock or you’re frustrated, I think it’s important to take a step back and look at it with new eyes because if you just stare at a problem it won’t help. I think it’s always important to take a step back and sometimes even ask other people because it’s always good to make connections and get other people’s help. They can help you in ways that you can’t help yourself, and you can help them in ways that they can’t help themselves.
