Cohort Stories: Meet Zacharie
Boston: vol. 8, no. 84— guest post by Zacharie Verdieu
A large part of my identity stems from being the child of two immigrants who have had to work hard to create opportunities for themselves since coming to America. Growing up with the fruits of their success has pushed me to work just as hard to accomplish even more than they’ve been able to. As I reflect on how far I’ve come since I started my academic journey, I feel nothing but gratitude not only for their support, but also for the source of motivation my parents have given me. Knowing that I come from such strong-willed and determined people has helped me stay focused and push through any adversity that I’ve come across. I take pride in the fact that the blood of the two most inspirational people I know is running through my veins.
My dad is an electrical engineer and as a kid, whenever he’d show me what he was working on or explain one of his projects to me, I remember being fascinated by his work. Because of how interested I was, I always knew I wanted to work in technology. I figured I’d follow in my father’s footsteps and go into engineering but that changed in my junior year of high school when I took AP computer science principles. I remember learning about the versatility of coding and how accomplished I felt whenever I completed a difficult problem in the class. Coding has always felt more like solving a puzzle or a riddle than doing work so naturally I decided to study computer science in college. This decision is proving to be a great one as I’m enjoying those classes more than I’ve ever enjoyed school in the past.
Since the beginning of my academic journey, my parents instilled in me the importance of academic excellence. My initial goal was to please them or rather to avoid upsetting them, but over time I developed a genuine love for learning. I didn’t realize the effects of this change until I got into computer science.
The challenge of unraveling coding concepts felt like figuring out new ways to solve puzzles, and I found joy in mastering them.
As I continue to learn more and more about different languages and algorithms, I find myself getting more excited about what I’m going to learn in the future. It sounds corny, but my love of learning is what continues to motivate me through my academic journey.
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