Each year, the graduating students of this top technology University impress the world as they go on to become respected innovators in their fields. Explore a selection of profiles showcasing our accomplished alumni heroes. If you're intrigued by the prospect of achieving similar success in technology leadership, you've arrived at the perfect destination.
PROFESSION:
3D Artist at American Gaming Systems
Alessandra Caballero Sosa successfully navigated the challenging job market after graduating from University of Advancing Technology (UAT) in May 2021. She thrived in the studio environment at FabCom, an integrated marketing, advertising and brand experience agency, where she gained valuable experience with various software and collaborated within a team working on the HReality project. She soon propelled her skills and expertise into her current role as a 3D Artist at American Gaming Systems.
The UAT alum credits the university for instilling adaptability and quick learning skills, which have been crucial in her career success. She gains inspiration via her love of video game series like Borderlands and Bioshock — though she cautions student artists to not let inspiration give way to comparison: “Try not to compare your work to others. You don’t know how different their experiences are, so you really can’t compare yourself to them. You’re a different person. Try to work on and improve yourself instead of comparing to others’ work.”
PROFESSION:
Software Engineer at Embedded
Bachelor of Science in Robotics and Embedded Systems, along with associate’s degrees in Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence. The project-focused nature of Brandon’s degree set him apart, providing technical talking points during interviews and helping him demonstrate skills relevant to his job search. He soon secured his current position as an Embedded Software Engineer for Plug Power.
Brandon attributes the worth of his UAT education to the vibrant community: “I would say the community was what made UAT worth it. If you're an individual who is excited about technology, UAT is filled with like-minded people, all learning from and encouraging each other. Without my peers in the robotics degree, I don't think I would have been as prepared for my career as I am now.”
UAT Tech Blog:
Alumni Highlight — Brandon Michelsen
Brandon Michelsen: Robotics Alumni
PROFESSION:
Senior Network Administrator/Lab Manager, Eagle Research Group
Kevin Kadium completed his degree in Network Security in 2012—spending his senior year interning for a local advertising and marketing agency before being hired on full time as their Network Administrator after graduation.
Kevin has been playing around with computers and electronics since he was a kid. When he was 9 years old, for example, his dad bought him a computer—not a shiny new computer, it was in a thousand pieces. It took Kevin, with his dad’s help, weeks to put it back together.
UAT provides one of the best approaches to learning for someone like Kevin. Not only are the majors and classes at UAT designed to prepare students for top-level jobs, most of the professors are teaching from the perspective of their experience in high-level tech jobs.
Access to this level of expertise paid off big for Kevin—who was determined to get a national security job. In 2013 he was hired on as the Network Administrator/Lab Manager for Unwin in Germantown, Md. Working his way up, Kadium is now the Senior Network Administrator for the Eagle Research Group.
PROFESSION:
Associate Security Analyst, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.
Since graduating from UAT in 2012 Summa Cum Laude with his BS in Network Security/Engineering, John Faulkner has been working as a Security Analyst performing first level incident response and security monitoring; first for Apollo Group and currently (as an Associate Security Analyst) for Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.
“I was always one of those kids who played with mom and dad’s computer—usually breaking it and hurrying to fix it before mom and dad got home,“ explains John. “From that point, I kept wanting to learn and do more.”
After attending a community college, he learned about UAT from a friend. Although he didn’t know what area he wanted to pursue yet, he took the tour of the technology University that included the nationally renowned Cyber Security Cave endorsed by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). He learned more about the field, and was hooked.
Later he would realize he picked a rewarding career as an Associate Security Analyst at Charles Schwab & Co. in one of the hottest areas of technology in the world.
PROFESSION:
Founder, Retora Game Studios
Game Design graduate Tyler Coleman is founder and creative director of Retora Game Studios. Retora specializes in full service game and mobile app development, including individualized art and design services.
A long-time member of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA), Tyler is dedicated to growing Phoenix as a premier location for game development and would like Retora to be the catalyst. He envisions Retora as being a larger studio or collection of smaller studios within the next five to 10 years.
PROFESSION:
Instructor, Barton’s Summer Academy, Beijing
Innovation could be Ryan Carmain’s middle name. It has garnered him some well-deserved awards—even before he graduated in 2012 in Robotics and Embedded Systems. He co-developed a 3’x3’ LED cube with another student and they both received $1,000 UAT’s Artistic Innovator Scholarship. He also won first place in the Avnet Tech Games Solar Scrimmage with his solar powered water pump and was awarded a $1,000 scholarship.
“Overall, the classes I took really helped prepare me for the competition,” says Ryan. “My three circuit design classes in particular were helpful.”
Ryan also is a natural mentor. While he was still at UAT, he was an LEC Tutor at UAT, where he helped students who were struggling in various technology areas, such as Robotics and Programming. Soon after graduation, he was an instructor at Barton’s Summer Academy in Beijing, China, for one month, where he taught robotics, rocketry, math and English to Chinese students in grades 2 through 9. Currently exploring new opportunities, he hopes one day to work at NASA.
PROFESSION:
Federal Government (Classified)
Jacob Parks was 18 years old on his first day at UAT. By the time he graduated in summer 2011, less than two years later, he was 19 and embarking on the type of life that movies are made about. Jacob now has a job with the federal government (they asked him not to say more about it than that).
He has two degrees—a Bachelor of Science in Network Security and one in Technology Forensics. And, Jacob, who grew up in Bakersfield, Calif., is most likely going to be living and working somewhere on the East Coast.
“I was considering going to UAT, but what really sold me is that one of the school advisors sent me a handwritten card.” says Jacob. “That said to me, ‘You’re not going to get lost at a large school. You’re not going to be just a number."
While Jacob’s story is awesome, he isn’t the first UAT student to get snapped up by the federal government a few months before graduation. One of the reasons the government heavily recruits from UAT is because it’s a Center of Academic Excellence for its Information Assurance degree. That’s a hard-to-come-by designation from the National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security.
PROFESSION:
CSIRT Team Lead at eBay
Charles Neitzel is the CSIRT Team Lead and member of Global Information Security at eBay, Inc. His research interests include incident response, reverse engineering, network defense, forensic analysis, data science, and machine learning. Charles was invited to be a presenter at the 2011 International Cyber Defense Workshop and his work is featured in publications such as Behind the Bits and Geek 411. He obtained a Bachelor of Science in Network Security and a Bachelor of Science in Technology Forensics from the University of Advancing Technology in Tempe, AZ.
In his free time, Charles has also created a blog dedicated to malware analysis and reverse engineering in an effort to help others learn while constantly striving to improve his own skill set.
PROFESSION:
CEO at Infrasura
Sean lead the Boeing external customer focused security assessment services business. Additionally he was Chief Architect for advanced cyber security systems and security operations centers working with both domestic and international customers.
Previously Sean was Chief Information Assurance Engineer and member of the senior technical leadership staff for the Prime on the U.S. Army Brigade Combat Team Modernization (BCTM), formally known as Future Combat Systems (FCS), effort. Sean provided technical leadership and guidance to both the Certification & Accreditation and System Security Architecture teams.
Sean has provided expert consultation and guidance to multiple Boeing organizations and defense industry partners including Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, Northrup Grumman, SAIC, MITRE, Honeywell, iRobot, Cisco, and others.
PROFESSION:
Security Engineer at Lacework
As a distinguished alumna of the University of Advancing Technology (UAT) and a network security expert, Terra Cooke has performed pivotal work in cybersecurity across multiple sectors and in various crucial roles at SecureWorks, Gusto, ByteCheck, Boom Supersonic, Limeade and the United States Department of Defense. She is currently a Security Engineer for Lacework.
Terra is passionate about advocating for genuine support for Black and POC communities in educational institutions and in corporate spaces, emphasizing active engagement beyond token gestures: “I remember when I was starting my career, one of the first things I felt compelled to do was find a Black person in a position of power, and then find any other Black people I could. We got told to not shake the boat. We got told if we show up and aren’t ghetto or ratchet and we enunciate and don’t use Ebonics, then somehow we’ll be more respected and we’ll ascend the ranks … and that’s just not true. Respectability politics aren’t a thing … There is no right way to be Black in corporate America, so the best thing you can do is be yourself.”
UAT Tech Blog:
An Interview with Alumni Terra Cooke
Reducing Risk, Improving Compliance & Lifting Weights
PROFESSION:
Creative/Promotions Director at ABC 7 Amarillo, TX
Two semesters into his education at UAT, Daniel Sontag realized he enjoyed working on a live set. That’s when he decided to major in Digital Video which ultimately led to his successful career in television broadcast that began even before he graduated. In his last year of college, Daniel directed and produced two TV pilots in Arizona.
After graduation, he went on to become media director at two separate companies, one of which allowed him to interview celebrities and attend red carpet events. He is proof that a digital video degree from UAT can take you beyond filmmaking in Hollywood or New York City – into the television broadcast world that is ripe with opportunities in production and management. Daniel was recently recognized at the 2014 American Advertising Awards where he won a Gold and Silver award for his works.
PROFESSION:
Game Producer, Gameshow Network
Erin wasn’t always on a technology career path. She was a student at University of Texas at Arlington as a Theatre major when she realized technology could be a better fit. “It didn’t occur to me that making video games was an actual job until I was sitting in a 3D modeling concepts lecture and the instructor mentioned game production. It hit me like lightening. I knew at that moment I wanted to be in game production management,” she says.
Erin transferred from UT Arlington to UAT because only a few schools offer this masters level specialization. She loved UAT’s personalization and specialization in her career field. She was a producer for Playdom, an online social network game developer that’s a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company as part of the Disney Interactive Media Group. Developing games played on Facebook, Google+ and MySpace, Playdom was recognized by Lead411 as one of the ‘2010 Hottest Silicon Valley Companies.’ Today, Prince is a proud Game Producer for the Gameshow Network.
PROFESSION:
Software Engineer, Tennessee Heart and Vascular Institute
Originally from Paris, Tenn., Robert Lewis found his way back home to the Volunteer State after graduating from University of Advancing Technology in 2009. Robert is now making a real difference in the medical field as a software engineer at the Tennessee Hart and Vascular Institute. Robert uses C# to write pragmatic solutions for the healthcare industry.
After graduating from UAT, Robert learned of an opening at the Heart Institute. It was for a senor position, but they asked Robert to show them what UAT taught him. “They sat me down in front of a Compiler and said show me some recursion and some SQL. I did, and they hired me the same day.”
The Tennessee Heart and Vascular Institute is an official site for GE Healthcare. Robert and the software engineering team developed their own EMR. Doctors from around the world come to train with it and provide feedback so that it has been able to evolve over time.
Where does Robert see the third largest industry in the U.S. going? “I see everything moving into the Cloud in terms of healthcare. That technology has really come to fruition for the past few years and healthcare is definitely high on technology.”
PROFESSION:
Graphic Design / Social Media, Perfect Pooch
As an undergraduate at UAT, James Grant created STOC (Stock Ticker Orbital Comparison), an interactive data visualization that had its world premiere at the SIGGRAPH 2009 Information Aesthetics Showcase in New Orleans, LA.
After graduating, James went to work for Fabrica, Benetton’s communication research center. Benetton is the global fashion brand and retailer headquartered in Italy. As a Resident in the Interactive Department James designed, developed and produced projects like the Unravel, an interactive window display.
He says that, “The ability to take experimental classes that ran with small class sizes and were focused on being project-based and finding a topic that was interesting and developing projects about it couldn’t have happened anywhere other than at UAT.”
Back in the states, James has built up a business as a freelance graphic designer and is in the early stages of launching his own company.
PROFESSION:
Senior Network Security Executive, Sony Entertainment
Alijohn Ghassemlouei [CISSP, CEH] worked for almost a decade as a senior penetration tester for a federal agency and has been contracting security-cleared technical work since graduation. He was born in Southern California, attended college in Arizona, and currently works in San Diego, California as a THE senior Network Security executive in charge of SONY Entertainment. (Yes, he is the one making sure you cannot copy the new COD.) During his time in school, Alijohn led two teams to the Western Regional Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition, placing 2nd for two consecutive years.
Shortly after graduating from the University of Advancing Technology with a Bachelor of Science in Network Security, he co-authored The Hacker's Guide to OS X: Exploiting OS X from the Root Up. For over three years, Alijohn traveled cross country with a small team of specialists assessing the technical security controls for diverse federal customers, including DOE & NASA. Throughout all this, Alijohn has volunteered at multiple Black Hat conferences and has competed in various Defcon competitions since 2008. Professionalism, leadership, and organization are three of Alijohn's best qualities. When not in front of his Macbook Pro, he loves racing GoKarts or relaxing with a good thriller novel.
PROFESSION:
Director, Cape of Good Games Pty Ltd, South Africa
Stefan Dieckmann completed his UAT degree in Game Programming in 2009. Before returning from Arizona back to his home in South Africa, he sent his resume to several recruiting firms there. As he says, “From that, I scored an interview with Luma Studios in Johannesburg. They develop PC and cellphone games. I got the job and was immediately put on the game Flipt as a programmer.”
One of the keys to getting assigned to Flipt was that he already had experience with the game engine being used to build the game—Torque Game Builder from Garage Games—from a programming course at UAT.
Stefan feels that one of the big advantages for UAT graduates is “hands-on experience with the very same software and hardware that is currently being used by the professionals in the industry.” He also feels that UAT added another skill in his tool box by being involved in the team-based projects which are common for undergraduates.
“I came out of UAT already knowing how to work as part of a team with other developers, artists and programmers, which is the way the industry works.”
PROFESSION:
Product Lead at Echtra, Inc.
"All I've got to do is build the future, and I'll be happy.
"People count on me to bring them together around the mission. These visions of the future are so real and present for me, it's natural to be the translator from mission to goal to roadmap to execution. And once we build it, we have to make it better! We're so lucky to live in a time where customer feedback, behavioral data, and basically infinite computing power are on hand to help us make more perfect answers to really hard (interesting) problems.
"I've done a lot of that in games - fusing computing tech, networks, service platforms, and the art of creating brand new experiences that grab people by the millions and won't let go. It's time to look forward and build the next breakthroughs... I'm looking at you mobile, VR/AR, and streaming! When I'm not looking at the interactive space, I'm looking at how machine intelligence (AI/ML) can be used to un-stick progress on hard problems. I'm looking at how robots can take over the tasks that keep all of us "busy" when we'd rather be making.
"Everywhere I look, there's tools and technology fresh out of the lab just waiting to be made operational. That's the call to action so let's get rolling!"
PROFESSION:
Freelance VFX Artist
Rick graduated from UAT in 2007 with a double major in Animation and Digital Video. Before that, he attended a university in Hawaii where he majored in traditional art. When asked why he made the move to Arizona to attend UAT, Rick said, “I knew art was what I wanted to do, I just wanted to do it with a computer.”
Through the usual mix of hard work, networking with alumni contacts, good timing and a little luck, Rick landed a position on the Avatar visual effects team. Since his work on Avatar, companies such as Encore Hollywood and Sabertooth Interactive provide Rick a steady stream of projects involving digital workflows (DiTV) and visual effects for episodic television, MOWs, commercials, music videos and feature films.
PROFESSION:
Security Engineer, Cryptographic Services Team—Wells Fargo; Founder—HeatSync Labs
Jeremy Leung is a 2007 UAT graduate and past president of DC480—University of Advancing Technology’s hacking club. Today, he works as a security engineer for Fortune 100 companies like Wells Fargo.
Jeremy is also chairman and founder of HeatSync Labs—the Phoenix metros’ preeminent hands-on hangout for hackers. The lab is a membership-supported nonprofit that gives tech entrepreneurs and inventors access to expensive technology and professional-grade, high-tech tools they couldn’t possibly afford on their own.
After graduating, Jeremy got a job at CWIE, an Internet service company, as a junior administrator. The job gave him a good foundation for higher-level network security positions. After CWIE, Jeremy branched out on his own as a security engineer contractor, primarily for Wells Fargo.
Jeremy credits his career trajectory in large part to UAT, its professors, clubs and environment—where students, professors and industry leaders are always collaborating with each other on next generation technology.
PROFESSION:
Senior Research Operations Program Manager at Twitch
Erin Ali was an active member of the University of Advancing Technology (UAT) community during her studies, and she has since taken that level of intense engagement and applied it to her production career in the video game industry. Since graduating in 2007, Erin has held pivotal roles at Blizzard Entertainment, Twitch and Turn 10 Studios. She is currently Senior Research Operations Program Manager at Twitch.
Erin’s advice for students is primarily to remain open-minded to new possibilities for their career: “While I figured out that I wanted to be a Producer late in my time at UAT, I have spent my entire career finding who I am and what I want to do and should do. Please remember you don’t have to have it all figured out by the time you are interviewing for your first job in the industry. Just start somewhere, and be open to opportunities you may never have thought you’d go for.”
UAT Tech Blog:
UAT Alum Erin Ali is Playing to Win
The Hero's Toolkit for Navigating Your Career
PROFESSION:
Lead Designer, Senior Creative Director, FabCom
JT was one of those out there, artistic, Tinker Toy and Erector Set kind of kids—perfect training for a career in advertising. He manages and directs creative staff and evaluates projects. Previously co-owner of Brownfeld and Martin Design, JT comes from a long and diverse history in advertising with previous clients including America West Airlines, Arizona Biltmore, Arizona Heart Institute, McDonald's, Motorola, Syntex, and Pebble Tec to name only a few. He’s a decorated ad man, credited with Addy's, an Effie, HSMAI, a Prisma, a Telly, a Tina—and a Kim, his wife of 29 years. What would he be doing if it was something other than outstanding creative design? Marine biology.
PROFESSION:
Freelance VFX Artist
Originally from Madison, Wis., David has worked on many movie and television projects—wielding his artistry in VFX, 3D Depth, CGI, post production, graphic design, stereoscopic composition, animation and restoration.
To date, David has bee involved in more than 50 Disney movie trailers and over 10 movies including the 007 movie Quantum of Solace, Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol and Bobby.
“Typically, my area of specialty is invisible art, kind of the artistic cleanup crew,” David says. “I finalize the look of shots so that any rigging wires or other objects that should not be there are removed, blemishes magically disappear, and physical features are enhanced to coincide with the role or movie theme. Sometimes, I get to have extra fun, like in Fred 2: Night of the living Fred when I superimposed a skinny guy’s head on a muscle man’s body.”
David also has become a teacher, presenter and mentor to students throughout the country, and recently presented at UAT’s annual Tech Forum event.
PROFESSION:
Senior Software Engineer, GoDaddy
UAT alumnus Brian Clifton is in go mode in more ways than one. He’s a UAT 2003 graduate in Enterprise Software Development. Not only is he a senior software engineer at GoDaddy.com, the largest domain name registrar in the world, but he also recently released a game on XBOX 360 through game company Morgopolis titled Magicians and Looters.
During high school in Florida, most of his friends and former classmates couldn’t relate to Brian’s passion and his desire to write code and program. When he received a UAT brochure in the mail, he knew that’s where he needed to be.
Once at UAT, he was introduced to a lot of great people including Professor Phill Miller. He helped Brian realize software engineering was his true passion. Now a mentor himself, he has spoken at UAT’s Tech Forum and advises his team at work.
Just like UAT was a good fit for Brian, he feels GoDaddy.com also is a good career fit. He is building a stellar reputation in his profession and is continually sought after by some of the biggest online companies on the planet.
PROFESSION:
Senior Technical Director at Gearbox Publishing
Scott Velasquez first discovered University of Advancing Technology (UAT) in 1996, and was drawn to its game development focus and industry-experienced faculty. These elements of his UAT education ended up being crucial for Scott’s game industry career, as he secured a programming position at Cinematix Studios not long after graduating and pivoted into a role at Gearbox Software. Working his way up over the years, Scott rose the ranks and is now a Senior Technical Director for Gearbox Publishing.
Scott’s portfolio of work is vast and impressive, having contributed to well-known gaming franchises like Counter-Strike, Borderlands, Halo and Brothers in Arms. He advises students to seek out job-shadowing/internship experiences while in school so that they can be better prepared to find employment after graduating: “Getting a better understanding of the role you want to have someday will help you start preparing sooner rather than later. Attend some game development conferences and meetups.”
PROFESSION:
Vice President, Cerberus Capital Management
Merritt Graves graduated from UAT’s first class of Enterprise Software Development students with a Bachelor of Science degree. He soared from there, going on to earn an MBA from City University of New York – Baruch College - Zicklin School of Business. Additionally, Merritt became a Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer and holds a professional certificate in Derivatives and Risk Management from the New York Institute of Finance.
Merritt's hard work led to building an impressive portfolio of extensive experience designing and delivering applications to meet a wide variety of business needs in the financial business industry. It all began with his high school teacher who connected him with CAD classes and ultimately UAT. "Software engineering is a wonderful field to get into," says Merritt. "A beautiful latticework forms in your head, like an ice sculpture."
PROFESSION:
Network Security, 2007: Founder, CTO – Check Gateway
Shortly after Brian Bonfiglio, class of 1998, started working as a developer at Check Gateway, an electronic check processing company, he was called into the owner's office. Had he done something wrong? Were his responsibilities going to be changed? In fact, the real reason Check Gateway's owner wanted to speak with Brian was to offer him, along with another employee, the opportunity to buy the company!
"At the time I was the IT manager of this company and knew the most about the software and maintaining the network," he says. He gained this foundation in software and web developments while a student at UAT. It's also where he began to build up extremely sound problem-solving skills, first as a student, then as an intern working for UAT's internal IT department during his last year of studies, and later as a full-time employee after he graduated.
The company is currently working on creating additional intern positions. They will look to the UAT student body to fill the openings. These will be project-based internships, where the students will have the chance to see their work impact a real-world business challenge.
Brian says, "I am very proud as a graduate of UAT to see them continue to make huge leaps to become one of the top technology Universities anywhere."
