Two CSE Flit-GAP students attended the 2023 Annual S-STEM Scholars Meeting in Washington DC in mid-September. This annual meeting is a professional development conference offering guidance on internships, summer research programs, career planning, graduate school preparation, and resume writing. The Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Resource and Evaluation Center (S-STEM REC), who hosts this conference, builds community and cooperation between students in NSF funded S-STEM programs.
“I attended the S-STEM Scholars Meeting because I thought it would be a great learning opportunity, and that I might meet interesting people,” said Viktoria Petrova (Senior, Cybersecurity). “My experience at the S-STEM conference in Washington, D.C. was truly unique and eye-opening.” said Brandon Gonzalez, (Senior, Cybersecurity) “It marked my first time flying out to connect with fellow STEM enthusiasts, eager to network and delve into conversations about our collective futures in the field.”
At the conference, Viktoria and Brandon had the opportunity to connect with others in similar STEM disciplines and backgrounds, there was also a career fair with representatives across multiple industry sectors. “We also had the chance to explore Washington DC and visit different monuments and museums.” said Viktoria. Viktoria and Brandon received this opportunity through the Flit-GAP Scholarship program at USF, travel funds came from NSF.
The S-STEM Flit-GAP (Florida IT Graduation Attainment Pathways) project, funded by NSF, is part of the Broadening Participation in Computing (BPC) effort at USF CSE. This is a collaborative effort with FIU and UCF to recruit, retain, and guide to success (graduate and help find a professional pathway) academically talented, financially challenged students in the computing disciplines. Prof. Ken Christensen is the USF PI of this project.