My journey into design started during my undergrad in Business Technology and Business Analytics at Carnegie Mellon University. While working on a project for Giant Eagle, a grocery store chain, we were tasked with creating a simple prototype for a web app. My team discovered Figma and, after experimenting with it one night, I transformed our basic mockup into a detailed, interactive prototype. When I showed my professor, he recognized my enthusiasm and encouraged me to explore design further, pointing out the connections between business and design.

While it wasn’t a full-fledged design process that experience sparked my passion for design, leading me to apply for Human-Computer Interaction programs. I ultimately joined CMU’s HCI Master’s program, which helped me turn my newfound interest into a career.