Computer science student, Graham Burek, is from Staten Island, NY and pursues concentrations in software development with a minor in mathematics. He holds multiple leadership roles as secretary of the Marist Computer Society and subcommittee head for the Marist Game Society. Burek also works as a developer at the Marist-IBM Joint Study program. Last fall, at IBM’s 2016 TechConnect competition, Graham and his group won an award for their CyberSecurity project.

What did you take away from your recent experience at TechConnect?
Presenting at IBM TechConnect put the research that myself and my co-workers were doing at the Marist-IBM Joint Study into a larger context. When we showed our work at TechConnect, I was able to see what other kinds of research computer scientists and developers were working on and saw how what we did fit in. This got me really interested in pursuing research as a career goal.

How did you come to the realization that this major was right for you?
After taking a programming class in my senior year of high school, I knew that I wanted to major in the field. Marist has given me a great opportunity to pursue this desire through its amazing faculty and facilities.

How do you feel Marist and your specific studies are preparing you for the professional world?
As any computer science major here at Marist will tell you, courses here are hands-on and focused on learning what is important to become a competent coder in the real world. What is not often mentioned, however, is that professors are also always looking for students to get involved in research with them. This means that whatever your goal is in coming to Marist for computer science (whether it be to go into the workforce or to do research), there is something here for you. 

Written by Sarah Gabrielli '18