MEET OUR WITTY WOMEN: SHAFALI

This past academic year, we worked with a cohort of 7 female-identifying students to develop a technical solution for the non-profit organization YearUp! We are so proud of our first cohort and all the work they accomplished, and for the next few weeks, we’ll be featuring these amazing students here on our blog.

This week we are featuring 18-year-old Shafali Gupta. Shafali is a rising sophomore at Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College studying Computer Science . She’s our fourth witty woman to be featured, and we are so excited for you to learn a little bit about her through this post.

Why did you join the wit project? 

I joined the wit project because my dream job is to use technology for a social good that helps people from underrepresented neighborhoods and women. This is exactly what the wit project does. The first aspect of the program I was attracted by is the fact that we were going to work with a non profit, which means that the work that the team would do would actually be used by an organization that works towards helping others. I never created something that would actually be put into production, which was incredibly exciting. The other major reason why I joined the wit project was because I would be surrounded by both professional female technologists and fellow peers of mine. The majority of my computer science classes and events I have attended were male dominated, so it was going to be really nice to be in an environment with only females. I think having that environment is very freeing and comforting and definitely helped me grow confidence in myself.

What has been your favorite part about the volunteership experience? What have you learned from the wit project? 

My favorite part about the volunteership experience was learning a lot of things that I never knew before. I never used Django, Postgres, made an API, or learned machine learning before. It was really rewarding having the support I need while also not being handheld and being able to learn how to solve problems on my own. I learned a tremendous amount from the wit project. I learned what Django is and how to use it as well as being exposed to machine learning. I learned how to change how I approach a problem according to the framework I was using. I learned how API requests work and the different connections needed for them as well. In addition, I was introduced to databases, in particular Postgres, and front end web development. Along with technical skills, I learned a lot about working on a team and agile development. I learned how to ask more clarifying questions about deliverables, how to better organize myself and a team, and how better communicate cross teams as well.

Why is it important to have more women working in tech? 

It’s important to have more women working in tech because for tech to advance, there needs to be more diverse perspectives and ideas that are shared. Currently, the tech industry consists of mostly men; but having more women working in tech would mean there are going to be completely different voices from the ones that have been running the tech industry for years now. With new ideas comes advancement and general bettering of the world and the space that technology fills in our lives.

What are your goals for the next year? Where do you want to be in 5 years? 

My goals for the next year are to continue learning different frameworks and to be able to build websites using them. I would also like to explore other fields of computer science and widen my horizons and gain as much knowledge as I can. In addition, I would like to participate in more hackathons and create personal projects for myself. In 5 years, I want to be a software engineer working towards closing the gap between men and women in the tech industry. I would like to be working with companies or possibly creating my own that helps disadvantaged kids, especially girls, get their foot into the tech industry and provide them with the skills and support they would need to succeed.

Who’s a #badass technologist you look up to?

A #badass technologist I look up to is Karina Popovich, a student at Cornell University, who has created her own clothing line for women in tech, Wear Alpha. The company donates 20% of every purchase to female-run STEM organizations. They also provide workshops, interviews, and other opportunities for girls in tech. In addition, she is the founder of Makers for COVID-19, where she 3D printed masks and helped create and deliver other PPE for essential workers in NYC. I look up to her because she is using her technical skills to help women in tech and other people, such as essential workers, who are in need of help.

Tell us a fun fact about yourself! 

I love zip lining!