A few years before moving to New York City to pursue a career in cybersecurity – specifically within the specialty of bot mitigation – SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) alumnus Niranjan Addanki could be found scrambling between classrooms in Donovan Hall, eagerly working to tackle his next big-data research project.<\/p>\n
A native of India, Niranjan first enrolled in Hyderabad\u2019s Chaitanya Bharathi Institute of Technology in 2008 to pursue a bachelor\u2019s degree in Electronics and Communications Engineering Technology, graduating in 2012.<\/p>\n
After receiving his diploma, he landed his first job at Bank of America in Hyderabad to work as a Senior Tech Associate, later advancing to the position of Senior Software Engineer in which he streamlined ETL flow using big data techniques.<\/p>\n
After three years of working for Bank of America, he decided it was time to take his skills and interests to the next level.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought of having a master\u2019s degree in Computer & Information Science because I didn\u2019t interact with the basics of computer science while studying electronics,\u201d Niranjan said.<\/p>\n
Like many prospective graduate students, Niranjan found himself whittling down a lengthy list of potential colleges and universities. Among those were several institutions within the State University of New York (SUNY) system, and specifically, SUNY Poly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would say the opportunity to have a lot of research work was the driving factor because I wanted to learn at the same time by actually doing so hands-on,\u201d he recalled \u201cI\u2019m fortunate I chose SUNY Poly because it was a game changer for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2016, Niranjan became enrolled in SUNY Poly\u2019s Computer & Information Science M.S. program where he honed in on functional programming, big data, and machine learning, studying under Dr. Andrea Dziubek, Associate Professor of Mathematics and Physics, Dr. Edmond Rusjan, Associate Professor of Mathematics and Physics Bruno Andriamanalimanana, Associate Professor of Computer Science, Dr. Chen-Fu Chiang, Assistant Professor of Computer Science, and Dr. Michael Reale, Assistant Professor of Computer Science.<\/p>\n
\u201cI received a lot of support from them which I am very grateful for,\u201d Niranjan said. \u201cThey were all there from the beginning and guided me with the research work and most of the work I\u2019m doing right now is based on those fundamentals.\u201d<\/p>\n
When he wasn\u2019t studying, Niranjan was busy working as a Graduate Research Assistant, representing SUNY Poly in CS Hackathons and information technology intern for Utica Mutual Insurance Group. He later interned as a data engineer intern for The Walt Disney Company in Orlando, Fla.<\/p>\n
Upon graduating from SUNY Poly in 2018, he received a job offer from New York-based cybersecurity firm White Ops where he currently works as a Data Platform Engineer.<\/p>\n
While he has enjoyed success as a student and in his career so far, he found himself returning to his alma mater on a recent, snowy November Day to offer current Graduate Research Assistants advice on applying for jobs after college and tips to build solid resumes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t get a lot of feedback when I was applying for internships,\u201d Niranjan recalled. \u201cI thought of helping by giving something I didn\u2019t receive and offering them that opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n
He offered one piece of advice for any student following the same career path as him:<\/p>\n
\u201cJust go for it.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A few years before moving to New York City to pursue a career in cybersecurity – specifically within the specialty of bot mitigation – SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) alumnus Niranjan Addanki could be found scrambling between classrooms in Donovan Hall, eagerly working to tackle his next big-data research project. A native of India, Niranjan … <\/p>\n