Three Minutes with Alumnus YuFeng Lin ’21

YuFeng Lin graduated from the UC Irvine Master of Engineering (M.Eng) program in December 2021 with a concentration in electrical engineering and computer science. Here, he shares what he saw as the advantages of the program, and how he’s using what he learned to achieve his professional goals.

What drew you to the UCI M.Eng program?

Two things were most enticing to me about the program. One was the flexibility of the length of the program. I was able to extend my term after the capstone project, allowing me time to work at my internship with Tesla. In addition to the flexibility, it was really great for me, as an international student, that the program’s terms allowed me to use my student visa to study and work at my internship at the same time.

Can you tell us more about your internship with Tesla?

I had actually just started interviewing before I started the M.Eng program, and I was able to use things I’d learned in the program right away in my internship interview. I feel confident that it was a combination of those interview responses and UCI’s reputation that helped me get the internship. My internship focused on software, specifically VMware, and lasted three months, starting in the spring of 2021.

What part of the M.Eng program was most helpful to you and your professional goals?

As I said in relation to my internship at Tesla, UCI’s reputation has absolutely been helpful for me. Beyond that, I found both the capstone project and the entrepreneurship and leadership course to be extremely helpful. The latter class was a large part of the reason I chose this specific program, as that class offered real-world business experience that I knew I could use in my career.

Where has your career taken you since you graduated, and where do you hope it takes you from here?

After finishing the M.Eng program, I began working at Google on the software team, and I plan to stay here for a while. In a few years, I’d really like to become a senior software engineer.

Were there any particular professors in the M.Eng program who were especially helpful to you?

Farzad Ahmadkhanlou gave me a great deal of experience in setting a milestone and communicating with a company outside of campus. I learned so much from him while working on the capstone project. Pooria Yaghini was a lecturer who shared his experience at Starlink and was a wonderful resource as I started my internship at Tesla.