Transcript
WENDY: My name is Wendy Vang...
ANNA: My name is Anna Gye...
JAKOB: Hi, I'm Jakob Black...
WENDY: and I'm currently a ITI Major, systems subplan at the University of Minnesota.
ANNA: I'm a third-year ITI student focusing on data science and cybersecurity.
JAKOB: I'm in the Information Technology Infrastructure program, with a subplan in networking. I'm minoring in Studies in Cinema and Media Culture at the University of Minnesota.
WENDY: The reason why I chose the ITI program is because I really appreciate all the hands-on work that I get to do in the classes and also the opportunities I get to collaborate with my peers.
Compared to computer science where it's a lot of theoretical work, I get to actually get my hands on a lot of the labs provided by the professors. And I have that reassurance that I'm learning skills that are going to be applicable in the IT field.
JAKOB: I did four years of active duty service in the United States Air Force. So the Air Force gave me the opportunity to get into technology while I was serving, and that's why I'm transitioning to my academic career.
So this is only my second semester within ITI. I would say about half the classes are online, so it's a nice mix I would say like a hybrid learning style in terms of in-person and online learning. A lot of the work is group-based, so you're getting to work with a team a lot of the time, doing your section but also understanding the project as a whole.
ANNA: I would say my communication skills have definitely improved with the ITI major. Just learning how to talk and interact with people from different backgrounds, different disciplines, different majors.
There's a lot of group work, which I've learned is how it works in the real world as well, especially with tech. You're probably going to be working with people from all over the world, definitely in groups as well. And it just generally made me just more confident, even outside of class at work, speaking up and asking for help, whatever I need.
WENDY: One of the things I love about the ITI professors in the INET courses is how warm they are. It's very obvious that they care about the students a lot, and I really appreciate that, as I believe having a mentor to kind of nurture your growth is one of the most important things, especially if you're going to be in IT.
So, you know, I have a lot of confidence that I can network with them to get the right connections to then have a lot of job opportunities, or they can teach me skills that are very much applicable and in line with what's being used in the modern world for technology.
ANNA: When things get tough, I personally set standards and goals for myself. And when things get to start a little bit overwhelming, I take a step back and look at where I started and what I'm looking forward to.
JAKOB: I appreciate the ability for me to take some CLA minors in addition to the ITI major, because it allows me to interact with some of my passions that I already have. And it gives me a sense of achieving both that left-brain, right-brain kind of equilibrium, where I'm doing something applied science, I'm doing the information technology aspect, but I'm also interacting with art.
I seem to be spoiled for choice when it comes to club selection at the University of Minnesota. I've stuck with the film club just because that's a passion that I already have, but I am looking into doing some of the more tech-oriented clubs. Like I know that there's a cloud computing, or the AWS club.
ANNA: With tech there are a lot of options available, so I'm still exploring, but hopefully I will be staying with tech. As some of my professors say, some of our careers are not existing right now, so it's pretty exciting to look forward to.
WENDY: As I go through my classes, I see more and more of female students breaking into the ITI field. The biggest thing that really motivates me is someday in the future, I'll be a role model for the younger generations where they want to break into a male-dominated field. And I can serve as an example of, "hey, you know, if I can do it, you can also do it."
