Newsletter for 02/14/2022

New Announcements

Announcements

Competitive Programming Club for UCSC

Hi everyone,

My name is Nhan Nguyen, and I'm a sophomore here at UCSC. My proposed major is Computer Science: Computer Game Design. I have been programming since I was in 9th grade, and I have a deep passion for this subject.

For the past 2 years, I have been very devoted to a field in Computer Science called Competitive Programming (CP for short). Throughout the course of 2 years, Competitive Programming help me explore many programming techniques and algorithms that catapult my programming skills to the next level (to name a few simple ones: Binary Search, Two Pointers, DP). As my skills steadily improve, I found myself in many different coding contest from large companies like Google, Facebook, etc (my most recent one being Facebook Hacker Cup). Being involved in the Competitive Programming community for a long time also exposes me to a very prestigious contest called ICPC ( https://icpc.global/), and from there I realized that one of my biggest dreams is to compete in the ICPC.

So I got to work looking for a UCSC club that covers the topic, and I was disappointed to find that our campus lacks such a club. Since UCSD and most UCs has such a club and we don’t, I have started and currently am running a new club that specializes in Competitive Programming here at UCSC. The end goal of this club is to improve fellow programmers personal coding skills with a variety of problems to participate in the once-in-a-lifetime ICPC contest, compete in other prestigious contests like Facebook Hacker Cup or Google Codejam, and also gearing them up with the necessary skills to ace coding interviews.

I am looking for advisors and executive members for this club. If you are interested in Competitive Programming and want to support what I'm doing or being an executive/advisor in general, please message me through my UCSC email: nhtrnguy@ucsc.edu, or you could join the clubs' discord here at: https://discord.gg/aw8EqPCbWy

P.S: If you don't know what Competitive Programming is you can see this video for reference https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueNT-w7Oluw&t=1s

Interested in AI or Natural Language Processing? Consider Applying to the UCSC NLP Master's Program!

Call for Applications: 1 year M.S. Program in NLP at UCSC Silicon Valley

Natural language processing (NLP) is a rapidly growing field with applications in many of the technologies we use every day, from virtual assistants and smart speakers to autocorrect. UCSC has created a unique Master’s program in NLP to provide students with the skills and in-depth knowledge of NLP algorithms, technologies, and applications that are in high demand in both industry and academia. Our program goes beyond the classroom by supplying students with industry-relevant projects for the kind of real-world experience that is essential for a successful career in NLP.

Please visit https://grad.soe.ucsc.edu/nlp/ for details.

Program Highlights:

- 1-year program, including a 3-quarter capstone project

- Core courses covering all aspects of NLP

- Instruction and capstone project collaborations with experts from industry giants like IBM, Microsoft, Amazon and Bloomberg

- State of the art facilities in the heart of Silicon Valley

Tutoring Sign Ups Open January 14th!

Learning Support Services is reaching to share that tutoring sign ups for students will open this Friday, January 14th at noon!

LSS's mission is to provide UCSC undergraduate students with inclusive learning sessions facilitated by advanced peer educators to build strong foundations for success while engaging with a community of learners. With your help, we can strive towards this goal!

How do students sign up to reserve their spot?
After Wednesday, January 14th at Noon students can sign up through our tutoring portal, Tutor Trac. Please direct students to our website for written instructions and video tutorials to assist them in navigating the system.  Please note that all tutoring will take place over zoom this quarter.

If you have questions after reviewing our website, please email lss@ucsc.edu or visit the LSS Front Desk! Our current hours are remote support through Zoom (Monday - Friday 9-6pm).
 

Data Visualization with AR/VR

If you are currently taking or have taken CSE 160/L, you may consider taking CSE 161/L in Spring 2022.

The class focus is on data visualization (seeing the invisible e.g. wind, or gaining insight from massive data).

In spring, I am planning on adding a module explicitly covering use of AR/VR in visualization.  In the past,

students have actually used these in their projects.  Here are two examples from Winter 2017:

More information available from: https://users.soe.ucsc.edu/~pang/161/w17/submit/projects/jrchuang/

More information available from: https://users.soe.ucsc.edu/~pang/161/w17/submit/projects/sasong,vshahbaz/

Projects from Top Banks/Consultancies - Ending Soon!

The following projects/challenges will be wrapping up soon. Each of these is from top banks/consultancies:

Top Bank: Project Community Impact - This challenge asks solvers to design the bank’s ESG website and give insights into what they think the layout and focus should look like. Renders, mock websites, and prototypes are highly encouraged!
https://www.mindsumo.com/contests/esgproject

KPMG: Propose a way to keep contract talent engaged in between projects
https://www.mindsumo.com/contests/kpmg-keep-talent-engaged

Student Focused company: Design a digital solution to help students prepare for life after school
https://www.mindsumo.com/contests/studentresources
NOTE: A note/tip if you plan to solve it - the company is not looking for ideas that already exist (e.g. peer to peer). They also do not want students to just elaborate on the problem but actually put in a well thought out idea to solve that problem.

Top Financial Firm: How can an auto/property insurance company better engage with consumers under 35?
https://www.mindsumo.com/contests/engaginginsurance


Reach out to isha@mindsumo.com if you have any questions.

SASE has Open Intern Positions

SASE is has opened up their officer intern positions, where interns would be shadowing an officer and work as part of the officer team. This is a wonderful opportunity to learn how to organize for a club, develop new leadership skills, and face unique experiences and challenges that will benefit your future career! These are all things you can talk about during behavioral interviews and add to boost your resume.

Applications are open to everyone! If you are interested in applying, please fill out the form: https://tinyurl.com/SASEInternApp

Engineers for Exploration (E4E) Summer Research Program at UC San Diego ­- Applications Accepted until February 15th

UC San Diego’s Engineers for Exploration Summer Research Program is a unique program centered around multidisciplinary and collaborative student research with the broad goals of protecting the environment, uncovering mysteries related to cultural heritage, and providing experiential learning experiences for undergraduate students.  This will be a full-time paid research experience from June 20th to August 26th in which students will work in multidisciplinary research teams to aid scientists from the San Diego Zoo, Scripps Institute of Oceanography, and the El Zotz Maya Archeological Site in tackling problems in fields such as ecology, physical oceanography, and archeology.

During this program, students will create and apply technologies in novel ways to aid scientists in their work, and may have opportunities to accompany these technologies on field deployments around the world.  Through these projects, students can expect to learn about embedded systems and software, machine learning, electronics integration, mechanical design, system building, as well as project management and team leadership.  For more information, please visit our website at https://e4e.ucsd.edu.

Applications are currently being accepted at https://e4e.ucsd.edu/apply through February 15.  Applications will continue to be accepted through March 30 if positions are not yet filled.

If you have any questions, comments or concerns, please contact Nathan Hui at nthui@eng.ucsd.edu.

New MA2PHD Initiative at Columbia Statistics | Info Session – March 4, 2022

Our next virtual M.A. in Statistics Information Session led by the Program Directors and staff is scheduled this Friday, March 4th at 3:00pm EST.

We are eager to introduce you to everything our program has to offer. In particular, we are very excited to share a new MA2PhD initiative of our program. See below for an overview of our program and more details on this new initiative with funding.

Please click on the RSVP link to register for the March 4th info session or one of our upcoming sessions.
*Note the times listed are in Eastern Time.

• March 4, 2022 | 3:00 - 4:00 PM EST - RSVP MA Stats Info Session Mar. 4

• April 1, 2022 | 3:00 - 4:00 PM EST - RSVP MA Stats Info Session Apr. 1
•  

Our M.A. in Statistics website provides comprehensive information about our program. If you or any interested students have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at ma.stat@columbia.edu. Thank you and we look forward to connecting with you and answering any questions you might have about our program.

HFSV Latin-x STEM Scholarships!

I am reaching out to you regarding the HFSV (Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley) STEM Scholarship Program, with an application deadline of March 18.

It is a long-standing program for Latin-x STEM juniors and seniors, with a long list of awardees gaining a great deal of support through it over the years.  All program details, including active application link and full information about the application process and its requirements, can be found here:  HFSV Latin-X STEM Scholarships

Winter '22 Needfinding and Ideation Skill-Building Groups

Are you looking to learn about how to use design thinking to create new products or services? Want to understand how to conduct needfing and ideation in a collaborative, project-oriented environment for a local non-profit using UX design frameworks like empathy mapping, Jobs-to-Be-Done, and techniques for analyzing interviews?

Join the needfinding and ideation skill-building groups hosted by the Tech4Good Lab! No prior knowledge is expected - all students are encouraged to join! We know you're busy, so the skill-building groups are extremely light. You'll only need to commit to two 90-minute work sessions each week for just 3 weeks and you'll get to learn with a small group of peers :)

This is also the third time we're running it, so we're going to be doing a research study to understand and improve the learning experience and to help us improve the platforms we are developing to support learning. If you want info on how to join, fill out the skill-building RSVP form (tinyurl.com/w22-skill-building) and we'll be in touch! Our first meeting will be early this week so sign-up as soon as you can. Also, feel free to send us an email if you have any questions!

Looking forward to learning with you!

Prof. David Lee and The Collectively Team

collectively-group@ucsc.edu

2022 Deans' and Chancellor's Undergraduate Awards Opens February 14, 2022

The Deans and Chancellor of UC Santa Cruz wish to recognize excellence in research and creativity among undergraduate students as evidenced through projects and theses performed in the normal pattern of academic activity at UCSC. 

The online application for the 2022 Deans' and Chancellor's Undergraduate Awards opens February 14, 2022. 

Please read the application guidelines below and contact a faculty mentor to confirm they are willing to submit a letter of recommendation on your behalf. 

All 2022 applications must be completed and submitted online by March 24, 2022. All graduating Dean's and Chancellor's winners will be recognized by having their names listed in the commencement program during UC Santa Cruz's graduation ceremonies.

DEANS' UNDERGRADUATE AWARDS

Fifty undergraduates, 10 from each of the academic divisions will receive a Dean's Award of $100 for outstanding achievement in their division. Please submit your award for the BE Division by March 24th, 2022. For more information on dates and deadlines and submission guidelines look here: https://dca.ue.ucsc.edu

Winter Career & Internship Fair - Feb 16th

Career Success is hosting a virtual Winter Career & Internship Fair on February 16th from 10am-1pm. This is an excellent chance for students to meet both 1:1 and in group settings with a wide variety of employers looking to fill internships and full-time roles. This fair is open to students from all majors and class levels.

California Policy Lab - 2022 Summer Institute

The California Policy Lab (CPL) is excited to announce that we are now accepting applications to our 2022 Summer Institute program.

CPL is hiring a cohort of talented UC undergraduates to work for 10 weeks this summer (June 13-August 19) on data-focused policy research projects. Applicants should have a background in data science, economics, statistics, or public policy, and should be well-equipped in coding and data analysis.

Participants receive a $3000 stipend and develop skills in research project planning and methods under the guidance of UC faculty. Questions can be directed to me (chris_runde@berkeley.edu). 

Jobs

Digital Dynamics is Hiring for Hardware Engineering Interns

Digital Dynamics is Hiring for Software Engineering Interns

Digital Dynamics is Hiring for Software Quality Assurance Interns

Digital Dynamics Has Full-Time Career Positions Open

Join Digital Dynamics to start or enrich your career in an exciting and innovative culture.

DDI is a growing technology company located in beautiful Scotts Valley, only minutes from Santa Cruz and Silicon Valley. Our company designs, manufactures and sells advanced controls solutions for demanding global industries. DDI technology controls billions of dollars of mission critical equipment in factories worldwide.

We offer competitive salaries and benefits. DDI is an employee-owned (ESOP) company where employees earn equity as part of their benefit package. Please use this link to apply to open positions: https://www.digitaldynamics.com/careers

Hollywood Special Ops is Hiring a Robot Operator

I am looking to employ a college graduate for a position as robotics expert in Los Angeles for my company, Hollywood Special Ops. You can see what we do at www.hollywoodspecialops.com. We’ve recently purchased a “Mia” six axis robot arm by Motorized Precision with hardware by Kuka and we want to hire someone to be its partner. We do high end specialty camera work for television, ads, and motion picture. This will be a very fun job for the right person. Please let me know if you can point me in the right direction. Best way to reach me is by phone (818-648-6572) or email drew@hollywoodspecialops.com

Thx!

Drew Lauer

Hollywood Special Ops

cell    (818) 648-6572

www.HollywoodSpecialOps.com

Job Opportunities at Alchemist Network Companies

Looking to Recruit CSE Undergrads for a Research Study

A research team in computational media is looking to recruit computer science students for a user study investigating the impact of reflection on gameplay and learning in the context of an educational game. 

If you choose to participate, you will respond to a couple of surveys, play several levels of a puzzle game that teaches parallel programming, record your screen during gameplay and send us the recording, and respond to reflection prompts regarding your gameplay. 

Parallel programming knowledge or experience are NOT required!

Participation will take several hours spread across 2-3 weeks. Participants will receive a 20$ gift card as compensation after the first few steps, and a 30$ gift card if they complete the entire study.

You must be 18 years of age or older and located in the US. You may not participate in this study again if you have already participated in it once.

If you are interested in participating, please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/DpQWyGYaM2kQ4d7D6 

SlugLink Lead Developer

The SUA Office of the President is hiring a Lead Developer for the mobile application SlugLink. This is a paid position! We are looking for an individual with experience with building full-stack applications and skills in React, Javascript, and GitHub. You will be working on a small team with one other developer and a designer. The development of Sluglink is in its final stages and we are looking for someone who can complete the project. The role will be from Winter through Spring quarter, with the possibility of continuing through Summer and School Year 2022-2023. Please refer to the attached document for a detailed description of the role. If you have any questions or are interested in applying, please email suapcs@ucsc.edu