The Skyline College Honors Transfer Program recognizes and celebrates current student and soon-to-be graduate Amanda Sayaseng!
Amanda will be one at the Honors Transfer Program Graduate Medallion Ceremony on Friday, May 6, 2022 from 12 – 1 p.m. in Bldg. 6, Rm. 6-206 – all are invited to attend!
Amanda is one of twenty students who will be graduating from the program and transferring this year.
Learn more about Amanda here:
JS: What is your major, and what programs at Skyline College would you like to shout out? (Which programs shaped you into the student you are today?)
AS: My current major at Skyline College is Computer Science and I am hoping to transfer into Computer Science and Engineering programs in the fall. Skyline has a lot of great programs that have made my community college experience extremely memorable, despite the majority of it being online. I came to Skyline as a computer science major so my counselor directed me to Engineering and Tech Scholars, through which I met a cohort of students that I take many classes with and share similar interests with. Another awesome program is the Winter Research Scholars Internship Program, which takes place over winter break. Through this program, I got to learn more about what research looks like in engineering, and we even had the chance to take on our own projects. My team decided to build an Arduino-based quadcopter drone, and it was definitely a super fun experience that further solidified my interest in engineering. The Honors Transfer Program gave me a chance to conduct undergraduate research with my professors and explore different fields. I really love this program because I made great connections with my professors and I learned more about my interests through the research projects I completed.
JS: Can you describe your educational journey?
AS: I started at Skyline College in Fall 2020 as a computer science major. I had a really difficult time deciding between computer science and biomedical engineering as I have always wanted to be a doctor growing up, but I also had a newfound interest in technology. I flipped-flopped between biomedical engineering and computer science a couple of times before eventually settling on computer science and engineering. Currently, I am waiting to hear back from universities to see where I will be going in the fall.
JS: What research projects from Skyline College are you most proud of?
AS: I loved all of the research projects I completed through the Honors Transfer Program. One of my favorites was about Dissociative Identity Disorder and criminal responsibility. I looked at various cases and their attempts to hold a defendant with DID who had committed crimes criminally responsible in a way that was morally just to society but still ethical to the defendant. I really enjoyed this project in particular because it was a great opportunity to learn about a field that is very different from what I am used to studying. Another research project I really enjoyed looked at scintillators in medical imaging techniques. Most of my college experiences had been online so I was super excited to be able to get some hands-on experiences in the physics lab. As a second part to this project, I worked on putting together a scintillator-based detector, through which I learned new skills such as soldering.
JS: How did faculty and staff help you as you did your research?
AS: One way my professors have helped me is with narrowing down a research topic. Oftentimes I will have a broader idea of what I am interested in researching. I’ll bring this idea to my professor and they’ll point me in a few different directions to explore possible ways to specify a topic. Another way my professors have helped is by connecting me to other staff members or faculty that would be beneficial to speak to. Throughout the research process, they have also helped with explaining what the results or data I come find could indicate, as well as ways to present these.
JS: What were the most important steps you took to start your transfer journey?
AS: The most important step I took was starting early. Before starting my first semester at Skyline, I met with my counselor multiple times and thoroughly researched the transfer requirements for my major and the programs I was interested in. I made note of important deadlines based on when I was planning to transfer and set up meetings with admission counselors of the programs that I was interested in.
JS: What valuable piece of advice do you have for current and future transfer students?
AS: Get involved with the Skyline Community! Whether through clubs or programs, it is a great way to meet new people. It is helpful to have a strong support system of other students that you take classes and share similar interests or goals with.
JS: What do you want to do as a career, and why?
AS: As of right now, I’m not entirely sure what I want to do as a career yet. I am still super interested in medicine and I would like to find a way to use computer science and engineering concepts to advance medical technology. Currently, I have been thinking about exploring a career in research and development.
JS: Thank you, Amanda! We wish you the best of luck on your journey!
Article and flyer by Janice Sapigao | Photo provided by Amanda Sayaseng
