Shantel Thomas had long realized her flair for computers while a student at Wolmer’s  Girls School. Information Technology (IT) at the CSEC level was compulsory at Wolmer’s and every year, from first to fifth form, served as preparation for this. She found that the topics “came naturally” to her and she enjoyed them thoroughly. Brought up in a household where the adults in the family always called on her to fix whatever went wrong on the computer, she constantly experimented with computers to satisfy her curiosity to learn more. However, it was her fifth form experience with her IT teacher, Carlene Rodney, (now a Computer Science lecturer at The UWI, Mona), that triggered the nod to pursue the BSc in Computer Science degree. “It was simply Mrs. Rodney’s passion and drive for the subject that motivated me to enrol for the Computer Science degree,” she said.

Full Steam Ahead

Thomas went full steam ahead to acquire her First Class Honours degree and 3.63 GPA. Employing rigorous study methods, she rose each weekday at 4 am to read through notes and complete assignments. During exam times, she would get up at 2 am. “My formula for success was having the will- power to wake up so early in the mornings to get my work done,” she said.

She had it all mapped out when she entered university, discovering one of life’s greatest secrets at an early age: “You have to do what you don’t want to do in order to do what you want to do. Everyone wants to have success, but the road to success is not an easy one, therefore you just have to do what you have to do to get there. This is my philosophy of life,” she explained.

She delved 100 per cent into her courses, enjoying in particular Information Systems in Organizations. She admired the lecturer, Carl Beckford, who whetted her appetite for the course. “The course included a project that allowed the students to analyse the different business strategies of a company of our choice, talk directly to company managers and gain insights into their competitive advantages. This was an exciting task because Mr. Beckford turned it into a mini competition between the groups and rewarded the groups based on their final mark. My group analysed Domino’s Pizza and their systems, won the competition, and each member received gift cards for The UWI Bookshop,” she said.

She also totally immersed herself in her final–year group project - The Student Course Advisor System (SCA) - a web application which aims to allow university students to keep up-to-date with the registration of their courses and their degree status, leading up to graduation. It also has a Credit Counter feature which tracks if a student has satisfied the minimum amount of credits necessary for their degree and graduation.

“The SCA will allow incoming and current students to efficiently track their degree progress by ensuring that they are registered for the courses needed to fulfil their programme and graduation requirements. It also alerts the students when they exceed the maximum amount of credits they are allowed to select in a semester and when they are below the minimum amount. This helps to regulate credit counts required to graduate,” she said.

Sound Advice

A serious-minded 21 year-old, Thomas’ career ambition is to become a Software Developer or a Web Developer. She would like to do a Master’s programme, but her immediate plan is to spend a year or two gaining some hands-on experience in the computer field. She offers sound advice to young person’s planning to pursue the BSc Computer Science degree: “Stay focused, have a goal in mind and stick to it. Don’t be distracted by all the “hype” of university life; have a little fun but not too much. Also, choose your friends wisely. Select smart, strong-willed individuals who will guide you in manoeuvring whatever obstacles might come your way”.