Welcome!
Thanks for stopping by. As I ready myself for the biggest adventure of my 21 years of life so far, I’m using this space to document my upcoming experience living and working abroad. Before I head off to the airport, here is a quick look at who Tahj is, and where I’m headed.
Meet Tahj!
About Me: Personally, Academically, & Professionally
- Personally: I’m someone who loves the creative process, whether that’s thinking through content ideas (I post on TikTok), digital video editing, recording music, or building creative collaborative spaces, I’m always thinking the next thing I want to create, how things are created, and the next step I can take from an idea to execution. I thrive on high-energy environments, culture, and exploring how different people express themselves.
- Academically: I am a rising senior majoring in Information Science. Originally I started off with Computer Science, however as I learned more about myself personally, I realized how much I enjoy interacting with people, and that really drove me to choose another major in tech that involved a more social side, and after many conversations and debates with myself, we landed on Information Science. Navigating the university as a first-generation college student has taught me to be resourceful, analytical, and highly adaptable. I focus on how people interact with technology, especially in user interface and design.
- Professionally: My background bridges technology and operations. From managing fast-paced environments in campus organizations to diving into design frameworks like Figma, I love solving problems where human behavior meets technology. This will be my first internship!
My Program: Why Seoul?
This summer, I will be spending two months in Seoul, South Korea for a comprehensive international internship program.
Honestly, a year ago, I couldn’t imagine myself even being in this position, let alone before the fall semester. When looking through different study abroad opportunities, one of my biggest realizations was just how comfortable I had become in my current enviornment, which isn’t a bad thing, but I realized how much I was driven by the idea of potential and growth all in one. I had to ask myself a big question: What is an environment that will push me the furthest out of my comfort zone, while still helping me meet my professional goals of securing an internship before graduating college?
Considering my background in tech, Seoul was the ultimate answer. It is a massive global epicenter of technology. I knew that experiencing a culture vastly different from my own, combined with being immersed in a world-class tech hub, made Seoul the perfect place for me. The idea of new food to try, and the thrifting scene caught my attention as well! Along with it being an incredibly vibrant city!
What I Hope to Gain
Personally
I want to push myself completely out of my comfort zone. I’ve felt that in my life, especially in my 3 years of college, my confidence has reached new heights. We’re all so different from before college, and I feel that transition throughout college has placed an extreme emphasis on that. As I’ve gotten so comfortable in my environment, and achieving things each year, I realize this isn’t my peak. This is only a step to a better me. Immersing myself in a culture with a different language and social rhythm will challenge my adaptability (what I consider my best skill). I’m extremely excited to experience the city’s unique creative energy, navigating a new daily routine, and build global connections, all while stepping out in a completely new country for the first time without my parents. A continuous theme among my blogs will be ‘How have I grown since before Seoul’?
Academically
This internship will serve as my senior capstone project. I’m looking forward to how the frameworks I’ve learned in class like human-centered systems and user research apply to a real-world, global tech environment. Some of the classes that I have yet to take, I will be excited to compare how a real-world context of an internship, applies to my future classes.
Professionally
I will be working as an UX/UI Design Intern at the startup Crosshub. My goal is to learn how international teams approach product design, user psychology, and workflow optimization. Gaining hands-on experience in a major global tech hub as my first internship, will be an incredible foundation for my career as I prepare to enter the industry full-time next year.
Looking long-term, my goal professionally, is that I want to become a Product Manager. To do that, I need to understand different cultures approaches problems, how people think, and why they think the way they do. This international experience will allow me to build products that don’t just meet one specific group of peoples’ needs, but a large-scale product that meets the needs of whoever comes across it.