Post-Attendance report

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I was among ten selected GitHub Campus Experts worldwide to receive a highly coveted GitHub Universe Scholarship. The scholarship provides an all-expenses-paid trip to the USA to attend the GitHub Universe tech conference in person on Nov 2023 (i.e., travel, accommodation, and miscellaneous expenses kindly sponsored by GitHub).

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What activities did you attend?

- The GitHub workshop that taught us on how to create our elevator pitch (a useful session!)
- Being part of the AMA Panel Discussion for GitHub Partners
- Opening Keynotes Day 1
- GitHub Foundations Certification Exam
- GitHub Advanced Security: Code Scanning
- Fireside chat with Martin Woodward and Stormy Peters - Vice Presidents at GitHub
- GitHub Dark Mode (a social drinking & networking event)
- Opening Keynotes Day 2
- Ignacio's panel discussion on AI takeover in education: sitting in on Pandora's classroom
- Using AI for Good: Supporting global health progress
- Various team-bonding activities such as escape room (so fun btw!), dinners, and going to scenic attractions together as a group

What did you learn from attending GitHub Universe?

It was a life-changing experience for me attending GitHub Universe 2023. A mere summary would not capture how this event broadened my perspectives. I will delve into the details in a future blog post of my own - but here is the summary:

 

1. Technical Knowledge 💻

> New AI-powered features on GitHub, CodeQL security vulnerability scan feature on GitHub, and Accessibility features on GitHub to provide better Developer Experience.

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2. Cooperation is better than competition 🙌

> The Escape Room activity demonstrated how each group of unique and diverse individuals (who didn't know much about each other before GHU 2023) was able to come together to solve the escape room puzzle. We were able to leverage each other's unique talents & strengths and effectively communicate our way to escape the rooms together. This might seem like a simple & typical social event - but it was through this event I honed numerous key professional skills such as **learning when to take charge, learning when to let others take charge, multi-tasking & information analysis, observational skills, and most importantly - providing effective communication in unison as a team.**

 

3. 1 trip benefitting 8 countries 🌎

> This group of campus experts selected for GHU 2023 came from 8 countries. Through the various pre-planned activities at GHU 2023, numerous activities that GitHub Campus Experts self-organized (such as going as a group to visit places such as Pier 39, Golden Gate Bridge, etc), and the numerous heart-to-heart conversations ❤️ we all had with one another - it was evident to me this trip impacted the lives of every single one of us. We will bring forth these learnings and impact and enrich the lives of our community members even further!

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Who did you meet?

- All my amazing GitHub Campus Experts (Larry, Naren, Michal, Jose, Harsh, Seo Hyun, Grace, Alberto, Ignacio) 
- GitHub Staff (Juan, Dyson, Kaitlin, Morgan, Thomas, Stormy Peters, Martin Woodward, Ingrid Yan)
- Numerous tech professionals that approached us to learn more about the GitHub Campus Experts program

 

Best thing about the event?

As mentioned above, I've interacted with amazing people during GHU 2023, especially my fellow GitHub Campus Experts.
 
As the **oldest** GitHub Campus Expert in the group, I never once felt excluded or discriminated against because of my age. I was immediately welcomed to the group on my first day. The sense of warmth, spontaneity, and passion that my fellow GitHub Campus Experts had was so prevalent and infectious that it made me strive to become a better person than I was before attending the event.

 

For my fellow GitHub Campus Experts who made me learn important life lessons - here is my appreciation to all of you:​

 

@larryshamalama - The biostatistics researcher of our group! I am so grateful to meet someone related to the public health/healthcare sector, despite it being a tech conference. I enjoyed our various conversations, especially the one we've had at GitHub Dark Mode, discussing the intricacies of life and our plans. All the best to your remaining PhD journey, and wishing you success in developing customized dynamic treatment regimens that will benefit patients in the future!

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@narenkhatwani - The expert photographer and navigator of our group! Kudos to you for leading the group as we navigate through the different attractions in San Francisco. Your dark sense of humor and photography skills never fail to amaze me! I've pinned up the postcard that you've given us. Thanks for being a great conference buddy, and good luck with your PhD journey regarding encryption/decryption algorithmic research!

 

@gniadeck - Hi, a fellow software engineer from Poland 👋🏻! Hearing your perspectives on how the software engineering market and educational institutions worked in Poland was refreshing. For the limited amount of time that I've been in the GCE program, I thought I was the only one doing part-time studies - and meeting another fellow part-time student from Poland was amazing :). You're young and doing great as a mid-level software engineer, and I hope you continue to hone your Java expertise and achieve your goals of becoming a senior SWE.

 

@josefdc - Jose, something you mentioned during the Fireside Chat with Stormy Peters that deeply resonated within my heart was how appreciative you were of being able to be selected for this conference trip. I agree with you that not everyone has the same opportunities in life - and your appreciation for this opportunity touched my heart as I sat beside you that day. Your genuineness in your interactions with other Campus Experts and your appreciation of this opportunity was evident, and I thank you for being your authentic self during this event!

 

@HarshKapadia2 - My man, Harsh, here deserves the 'Most Likeable Award' amongst this group of GCEs. As Grace previously pointed out - "Everyone loves Harsh." I couldn't agree with that statement even more. You provided great responses during the AMA Panel Discussion for GitHub Partners - in fact, we agree on how awesome the Heroku benefits are in the GitHub Student Developer Pack. Also, I agree that migrating to other PaaS providers is a pain, especially if you are accustomed to using a particular platform. I wish you all the best in your career as an SWE in Texas!

 

@kshjessica - The very first GitHub Campus Expert I've ever met in person! Kim, or Seo Hyun, was the social butterfly of our group. Kim - your dedication to learning English is admirable, and from you, I've learned that it is necessary to step out of our comfort zones sometimes to achieve the things we want in life. I enjoyed hearing your intriguing stories from working as a bartender previously. Your prior athletic achievements and enthusiasm in trying out different experiences in life are things that I will attempt to do in the future.

 

@ggongg - Grace, you're the most driven woman I've ever met in tech. Before coming to GHU 2023, I saw your profile and noted your numerous accomplishments at such a young age. I wished we could have interacted more and learned about your motivations and aspirations. Your driven personality and learning attitude are something that I admire and appreciate, as evidenced by the instance at GitHub Dark Mode where I noticed you studiously took down notes in your notebook on the various learnings from the numerous interactions you've had with the GitHub staff and other tech professionals, at the event. All the best to you - a future Women in Tech eco-space leader!

 

@Alberthor47 - Alberto from Mexico - I remember your life analogy on the Pendulum Metaphor from our conversations. That was deep - and this was something that I'd never heard before. It was a valuable learning lesson on my end. You have solid views and opinions on modern issues such as inclusivity, and this was evident in your responses during my interactions with you at the elevator pitch workshop. I enjoyed learning from your perspectives as we talked during occurrences at GHU 2023. All the best in your journey as a front-end developer at Be-Go!

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@IgnacioPalma - Your responses in the 'AI takeover in education panel' made me realize how prevalent AI is in education. As you provided your responses on how AI is taking over in the education sector in Chile, I noticed how calm, composed, and confident you were as you provided answers to the moderator's questions despite being on the hot seat (center stage)! Conversations at the Elevator Pitch workshop at the GitHub SF office taught me more about your AI community and your motivations for transitioning from a business degree to a data-science degree. I'm glad to see such a thriving AI community in Chile!

 

What could make GitHub Universe better?

It would have been great if there were an additional 1 to 2 days of team-bonding activities after the conference ended. 

 

This would allow future GitHub Campus Experts to bond and get closer together and form stronger friendships, which might lead to future collaboration opportunities.

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I felt that the Escape Room activity strengthened my relationships with some of the GitHub Campus Experts, and the group did seem to warm up to each other even more after the activity.

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What could GitHub Education do better at the event?

Honestly, this event has been nothing short of **AMAZING ✨**. I wouldn't change a single thing :). Not only did I gain new technical knowledge on the latest AI, Security, and DevEx developments on GitHub, but more importantly, I also got to learn new life skills, hone my public speaking ability, and gain new friendships and perspectives.

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The diversity of the selected GitHub Campus Experts scholars and speakers for the event was very apparent, and to that, cheers to an enlightening year in the remaining months of 2023 🎉

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