Swimming’s Wesley Kim is Excited by the Possibilities of Computer Science

(PITTSBURGH, Pa.) – Ranked among the top programs in the world, Carnegie Mellon's School of Computer Science is a destination for students looking to immerse themselves in computer science research and education. This reputation, along with the chance to continue his swimming career, factored into Wesley Kim's decision to attend Carnegie Mellon University.

A Washington state native, Kim chose Carnegie Mellon's computer science program over the strong program at the University of Washington, where his father is a professor, for the chance to get away from home, see the east coast, attend a well-renowned school and continue his swimming career.

"Swimming is something I loved in high school," Kim said. "I inquired about joining the program after deciding to attend CMU. It's one of the best decisions I've made. I love the team and I think the coach is great."

While swimming has provided him a strict schedule to adhere to, it keeps him balanced.

"We have a tough practice schedule," Kim, a sophomore, noted. "It really forces you to manage your time and provides for less procrastination. I found myself last spring, without practice, being less effective. When you have morning practice, you force yourself to get work done and get to sleep at a reasonable time."

Computer science's popularity has grown across the nation and among athletes at Carnegie Mellon. Kim is one of 12 current athletes to study computer science. In 2009, five walked the halls of the newly opened Gates and Hillman Centers.

Kim is enjoying the hands-on opportunities he's already acquired through class work and an internship.

After his first swim season, Kim jumped aboard a startup company called CommunityVibe, founded by a Carnegie Mellon Tepper School M.B.A. graduate, which he found on TartanTrak, a career website for Carnegie Mellon. From March through the summer, Kim and another developer worked on the site code for www.comvibe.com.

This past fall, Kim secured the second internship of his young professional life. Come May, Kim will be in California at the Mountain View headquarters of Microsoft.

"Working with CommunityVibe as a web-developer gave me true hands-on experience with a start-up company," Kim said. "In Microsoft I'll get a larger industry experience, which is what I wanted when I began talking with them in September at CMU's Technical Opportunities Conference."

Kim will be joining the Microsoft Office team, developing code for Outlook on Macs. Although Kim's goal as a computer science major is still undetermined, he plans to use each summer to get an idea of what he enjoys – and right now, it's writing code.

As a code developer, he's really enjoying the smartphone movement and how it's bringing technology forward.

"With the emergence of smartphones, you see developers making nifty apps that have broadened the scope of what you can do with computer science," Kim said.

Carnegie Mellon has been linked to several applications including Siri, the smartphone's female-voiced personal assistant app on the iPhone4S.

An app idea of his own involves something more specific to the Carnegie Mellon community.

"A fun application might be something for campus dining, like a DineX exchange program," Kim suggested. "For students that have an excess amount of DineX or Blocks, they could exchange them with someone else."

Right now, the DineX exchange program is just an idea, but it sheds light on the appeal of computer science to Kim.

"Computer science is appealing because of the problem-solving aspects and its relevance to technology today," Kim said. "It's something you see in work every day."