Pursuing a career in computer science doesn’t require you to move away from Indianapolis. In fact, the city is fast becoming a hotbed of start-up tech companies that need cutting-edge employees to sustain their growth.
Adam Darrah, of Plainfield, Ind., was certain he would leave central Indiana once he earned his computer science degree this year from the School of Science at IUPUI. Instead, he finds himself part of this blossoming tech community and has a good job waiting on him.
“I had no idea I could work in Indianapolis with a computer science degree,” said Darrah, who also earned a minor in mathematics. “Surprisingly, there is a lot of stuff going on in Indianapolis. There is a great network of people and industry groups popping up around here.”
Darrah will work as a software engineer at Mobi Wireless Management, a corporate wireless management company located on the northwest side of Indianapolis. He has worked as an intern for the company for more than two years while attending IUPUI.
Darrah describes himself as “an entrepreneur who will start a web company” some day. He has been involved in a few local ventures already, but he has hopes of one day launching a company with the potential and culture he has found at Mobi.
“A degree in computer science makes you different,” he explained. “A lot of business people come up with an idea and find a tech partner to implement it for them. With my background, I can do all of that for myself.”
“Plus, the skills you learn in computer science, the languages you learn, you can basically find a job in every industry,” Darrah added. “One of the advantages of the this degree is you get to study theory you would not have otherwise known.”
Similar to many of his computer science peers, Darrah learned early he was interested in gaming and website development. As a Science alumnus, he now feels he has the confidence and training to influence others in the field, build software or start a business.