By the end of my first year, I knew I wanted to pursue a career in tech as a software engineer. But the tech industry can be tough to break into early on because there are only a few internship opportunities open to first-year students. That usually leaves two paths: campus research or a Research Experiences for Undergraduates program (REUs).
I knew I wanted something different. I wanted to work at the intersection of technology and social impact, something that matched both my values and my passion. The only way I could pursue that kind of experience was through the Meiklejohn Fellowship, which supports first generation and low-income students so we can take on meaningful opportunities that would otherwise be unpaid or out of reach.
Thanks to the fellowship, I was able to return home to Nepal and spend my summer working at an educational-technology startup focused on digitizing the curriculum for Nepalese students. The team was building digital learning tools, shared notes, and productivity features for teachers and students across the country. I learned more in those three months than I could have imagined, and those experiences helped me a lot when I applied for my tech internships in my sophomore year.
For me, the Meiklejohn Fellowship created a path that matched my goals and the kind of work I hoped to do at that point in my life. Without it, I would likely have stayed on campus and pursued research. That would have been a good opportunity, but it was not the direction I wanted to take then.
The Meiklejohn Fellowship is a meaningful resource for first-generation and low-income students, and it truly expands what feels possible.
