TA Spotlight: Yilong Chen
Yilong Chen is a TA for CS 7632: Game AI. Keep reading to learn more about Yilong!
What do you do professionally?
I was working as a software engineer in the Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) industry when I was an OMSCS student, and currently I am a first-year PhD student in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at Georgia Tech. My research interest is mainly about 3D point cloud reconstruction and Scan-to-BIM technologies used in construction sites as well as built environments. Basically, we are working on and looking forward to combining computer science knowledge in computer vision, deep learning, and robotics with building construction know-how to make construction engineering and management safer, more sustainable, and productive.
Why do you TA for OMSCS?
I took CS 6457: Video Game Design and CS 7632: Game AI offered by Dr. Wilson. At the end of the semester, I found that the contents of these classes, such as computational geometry, path planning, C# programing, and utilization of Unity 3D are well structured and related to my prior working experience as well as my future research interests. Furthermore, I was quite inspired by the time and enthusiasm Dr. Wilson put into setting up these classes, and I really appreciated the enormous amount of support I got from other TAs. So, I wanted to work as a TA to help others and keep involved in these topics.
What is your advice for future OMSCS students?
Being enrolled in the OMSCS program not only provided me with computer science knowledge but also gave me a chance to reconsider my career path. Although a quick graduation might be important especially if you need a career change, I believe one of the unique advantages of our OMSCS program is its freedom in terms of deciding how many courses to take and how many semesters to graduate. We are also allowed to take gap semesters and even keep taking course after we graduate. I think we could make full use of these flexibilities to find our true interests in computer science, which would in turn benefit our careers.
What's your favorite memory from your time in or working with OMSCS so far?
My best memory from my time in or working with OMSCS is that we are witnessing the evolution of each course as well as the whole program. Each semester, the professor is adding something new to the content, and we successfully built up an auto-grader for each assignment this semester, which will make the course available for even more students next semester. On the entire program level, we could also see that each semester there are some new courses being provided, and our syllabus become much more diversified as time goes by.
Find Yilong on...
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chen-yilong-679110128/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100006618409485