Amber Le
To start off, could I ask a little bit about your background info? So maybe your name, pronouns, major, and hometown?
I'm Amber, I’m a freshman, and I'm from the Bay Area. I’m from San Ramon, California, and I’m intended data science and cognitive science. This is my second semester in SAAS.
Awesome. And you say you're intended in data science and cognitive science?
Growing up, I was always more on the more creative side. I was always interested in psychology, biology, and sort of science-y related things like that. But coming to Berkeley and seeing how many opportunities there are in tech, and how diverse the field is, I wanted to find the intersection between that creative side of mind and the more technical side. So that's why I want to double major in cogsci and data science. Cog sci is something that I'm more familiar with, but then data science is something that can be applicable to so many fields. I think it's a really good way to challenge myself. I think that data science, and just tech in general, has so many opportunities that can be applied to things that I'm already interested in.
Awesome. Yeah, I definitely agree–it's amazing to be able to find a balance between what you care about and what's out there. I was also wondering if you could give me a fun fact about yourself.
Hmm, a fun fact is that I have seven piercings on my ears.
Do you have any hobbies or interests, like books, tv shows, movies, or music that you're into?
So like I mentioned earlier, I like all sorts of creative things. Growing up, I did art all my life. So traditional art, and then alongside that I got into graphic design in high school. I also like playing instruments, so I played piano, violin, and guitar in high school. I also like to dance in my free time. I'm on a dance team at Berkeley. In terms of music, I wouldn't say I have a favorite song, but I really like slow-sounding songs like kr&b. And r&b in general.
Okay, so you mentioned that you're interested in pursuing the intersection between Cogsci and data science. Do you see yourself pursuing any particular profession within the field, or just still exploring?
As of now, I'm not 100% set on just one career field, since there's just so many things to do in tech. But, I'm pretty interested in UI/UX and that sort of intersection between creativity, art design, and then more technical points such as seeing how you can work with technology to make it more user-friendly. That's something I've been interested in, anything that applies to those two interests of technical and creative. I think another aspect I'm interested in, which is sort of related to that, is human-computer interactions. Just seeing how we can use technology to improve the experience for people. But I'm still exploring as of now. I think I definitely have time to look at new fields.
Shifting gears a little bit to questions about SAAS. How did you find out about SAAS? What made you decide to join SAAS?
It's kind of a funny story actually. So back when everyone was tabling, there were a bunch of flyers going around, and I actually found a stray flyer on the floor of the elevator in my dorm. But it looked really interesting, so I picked it up. So after I got that flyer, I decided to go to one of the infosessions, and I saw how the leadership interacted with members, and really made an effort to make people feel comfortable. Like before they even started the presentation, leadership and execs were going around and introducing themselves to new members. And that was just a small part of SAAS that stood out to me. SAAS aligns with my professional goals of tech and data science and things like that, but also this community is what really attracted me to SAAS. There are so many data science clubs on campus that it's kind of hard to pinpoint which one you want to join. But just going to the infosessions really made me want to join the community and find people that had similar interests to me, not only professionally, but also in terms of hobbies and just hanging out with people.
Yeah, definitely agree that the execs and the leadership team are superb, among all the clubs in Berkeley, even. So I know you've only been SAAS for two semesters, but if you could share, what are some of your favorite memories from SAAS? In general, socially, maybe committee-related, just memories that happened in SAAS.
I was in CX last semester. And I think for me, a lot of my experiences in SAAS really helped shape my Berkeley experience as a whole because it was my first semester on campus. Being part of SAAS, and CX especially, which has such a big emphasis on integrating yourself into social culture, really helped me make friends and have that sense of community within my first month, which I really appreciated. And there's one event in particular: during Halloween we had a big-little pumpkin carving competition. It was not even data science related, but yeah, it was really fun to just hang out with other SAAS members at a casual setting to do something as random as carving pumpkins together.
What would you say is your proudest accomplishment in SAAS, thus far?
As mentioned earlier I was in CX, and that was sort of like the introductory, getting to know the more advanced type of data science. And coming into Berkeley, I didn't really have a strong technical background. I didn't have coding experience. But seeing how much I learned over the past semester, over the span of only a couple months, I was able to really learn a lot. I knew I was always interested in data science, but being in CX solidified that this is something that I really like doing. And honestly, I guess it kind of sounds cheesy, but just seeing my growth as a student was something that was really cool. Seeing myself getting comfortable with people and being able to make friends despite being at a new school — I think that's a big accomplishment of mine. It definitely is really cool to see the growth from the beginning of the semester towards the end.
Shifting a little bit to the social scene of SAAS. How do you think you made friends with people in SAAS? Or, how did you meet them?
We have a family system in CX, and because of the family system, I really got close to people within the committee. CX can be a bit bigger, I think it was like 11-12 people last semester. The number of opportunities you have to meet people really helped set the social scene in SAAS. I was part of Donut Bot and I was able to meet some people that I definitely would not have. Also the coffee chat system — even though it's a required thing [for new members], I really got a lot out of it and it never felt like I had to do it. It was really cool to meet older people in the club who had similar professional interests to mine. In terms of CX specifically, the family system was a really great way to meet other members at a non-professional setting outside of lecture time. Right now I'm the CX director, and my fellow director [and I] were actually in the same family together. So it was really cool to see how meeting people and those relationships that you make throughout the semester continue in future semesters.
Which SAAS value (community, exploration, mentorship) would you say you resonate with the most?
I talked a lot about the community aspect a lot. That was the thing that attracted me to SAAS and that's the reason I stayed. The professional opportunities and what I learned were a really invaluable experience, but the people were definitely what really made the club for me. I would say community as the one I relate to the most. But I think exploration is one that I would also point out too, because there's a wide variety of committees and SAAS is very flexible in allowing you to learn new things. And just within CX, being able to see how data science can be applied to so many different fields definitely goes into that exploration aspect of the club. The committees just cover a broad range of things, so we have not only education, but also data consulting. Having committees that sort of branch out to different aspects of data science and statistics is another part of the club that I think really differentiates it from others.
Yeah, you mentioned there's many other committees out in the club, obviously, because there's seven of them. Are you thinking of maybe joining any other ones besides CX in the coming semesters? Are there any other committees that you're interested in exploring?
I followed the CX to CX director pipeline, so as of now, I'm only familiar with CX. But a lot of the past CX members go into RP or IA. So that's something that I've been considering, since that would definitely be really cool to explore my own interests and that real application of what you learned in CX. But another one that I'd be interested in is Web Dev, since that ties into the creative and technical intersections, and it'd be cool to see how coding can be used to apply to that web interface and see how users can interact with it. That would be something in the future that I would consider. But I'm very open to exploring the different committees, again with that exploration thing.
Right. Are you ever going to consider DC (Data Consulting)?
DC? It hasn't been something that I've thought of as much as other committees, but yeah, I'm definitely pretty open to that. I don't know about next semester, but maybe in the future. I have six more semesters.
How has SAAS changed [since you joined], if at all? What do you think SAAS will be like going forward?
From a director's point of view, since now I'm more on the leadership side of CX, it was really different in terms of seeing how SAAS is run behind the scenes. It was a really valuable opportunity to get to know people in leadership and view SAAS from a different lens. It was really cool to be able to learn how everyone works together. Going to a leadership meeting was a really cool experience to see how committees interact with another and plan things together. In terms of going forward, I know that exec and leadership is focusing on that community aspect, so focusing more on integrating people in the club, and I think they might be downsizing a bit to help that community aspect. Because with a smaller club, you can get closer to people. I think in the future, SAAS will definitely be even more tight knit. Internal is focusing on inter-committee opportunities for club members, which will definitely help us get close to one another. External is reaching out and planning so many cool events across campus, such as their faculty coffee chats. That will definitely be a really good way to branch out professionally, and reach out to other clubs. I think it's definitely just gonna keep growing in a good way.
Got it. Thank you so much for your insights. You mentioned that being in the club in a spot of an advisor or leadership, versus just being a general member in the club, is slightly different. Can you elaborate on that a little bit?
Going back to last semester, the applications for director came out and I hadn't really considered being director at first. I was sort of like, “Oh, I should try out different committees.” But I was talking to Kate, who was our previous director, and she talked about how her inspiration for becoming director was helping newer members integrate themselves within the club. I think, for me, as I mentioned earlier, that aspect of CX was a really valuable experience for me, as an incoming freshman into Berkeley. So I realized that I wanted to be that person for other people who might have been in a similar situation as I was. And because most of, if not all, the current CX members are freshmen, I wanted the opportunity to be able to connect to newer members of CX and really make them feel included, so they would be people who'd stay in SAAS for a long time. It was really interesting to be in on the selection process. So rather than being a new person who's just been exploring new things, being the person who's helping to guide these new members is something that really made me want to apply to be a director. It's been really cool to see the current CX members interact with and really feel comfortable with one another. Even though we've only had a couple of weeks together, I can tell that they like each other and get along well. And even though the committee is only 10 people, we have a really big range of personalities. That's been really cool so far.
I can definitely imagine that managing people, in a sense, or even just simply showing them all kinds of the fun stuff that we could do in data science, could be frightening, but at the same time, it's a very exciting job that you're doing a good job of. Just to wrap things up, we have around 10 questions to get to know you. So just yell out the first answer on top of your head.
Okay!
What was your favorite class so far?
Data 8. That was sort of like an introduction to data science. And I took it concurrently with CX last semester, and it's just learning what you can do with data science which is super cool.
Who would you say is your favorite professor?
Favorite professor? Hmm, I never had him as a teacher, but I got this coffee chat with DeNero last semester and just got carried away with the way he talks and thinks about comp sci and data science, and it was super cool to listen. I definitely hope to be able to take a class with him in the future. I'm in CS 61A this semester and I've been watching his lecture videos, and I really like the way that he explains things.
What's your favorite Berkeley memory? It doesn't have to be SAAS-related.
There's so many to choose from. I think just in general, meeting so many different people. All my memories from last semester are shaped by having so many different people around me. No one specific answer to that.
Yeah, it's a great answer. What is your favorite spot on campus that more people should know about?
On campus? It was Moffitt. That's closed now. I used to be at Moffitt all the time. But if I had to choose one that I go to a lot this semester, I guess it's not technically on campus, but I really like going for coffee. So I've been at Cafe Strada a lot, which is kind of close to campus.
Yeah. I would agree. Cafes in Berkeley and around Berkeley are in general, very on point. I think this one might overlap, but what's your favorite place to study on campus?
I like to study in cafes, so I've been trying to visit different study spots on campus.
What would you say is the prettiest building on campus?
On campus? It was Moffitt. That's closed now. I used to be at Moffitt all the time. But if I had to choose one that I go to a lot this semester, I guess it's not technically on campus, but I really like going for coffee. So I've been at Cafe Strada a lot, which is kind of close to campus.
What would you say is the prettiest building on campus?
The prettiest place? I think just walking by the glade is really pretty, just seeing people relaxing and stuff. I think it's always nice to pass by whenever I'm going to class.
What would you say is the ugliest place on campus?
Oh, people say that Evans is ugly, but I don't think it's that bad.
Which is your favorite bathroom to use on campus?
My dorm bathroom is pretty nice. I'm in Blackwell.
What about your favorite restaurant?
It might not be my favorite one, but I feel like Kimchi Garden is my comfort food. I go there pretty often.
And then lastly, what's your favorite boba shop?
Oh, that’s a hard one. Okay, I know it's a chain, but I like Sharetea a lot. They have a lot of good stuff.
They also give discounts too, on group parties, which is awesome. Yeah, awesome. Thank you so much. I think this is all the other interview questions we have. Thank you so much for the member profile.