Former Software Engineer changing careers to study Botany

Education

2026-09 ‑ Present
**Non-degree Student**, *Biology*, University of Toronto
Enrolled in additional biology courses before pursuing graduate school
2026-02 ‑ 2026-06
**MITx Online Certificate**, *7.00x: Introduction to Biology - The Secret of Life*, MITx Online
GPA: 92.0
Exploring the secret of life through the basics of biochemistry, genetics, molecular biology, recombinant DNA, genomics and rational medicine
2022-09 ‑ 2023-08
**Master of Applied Science**, *Electrical and Computer Engineering*, University of Waterloo
CGPA: 95.5
NSERC Canada Graduate Scholarship - Master's
Engineering Excellence Fellowship
President's Graduate Scholarship
Dean's Entrance Award
2017-09 ‑ 2022-04
**Bachelor of Applied Science**, *Honours Computer Engineering*, University of Waterloo
CGPA: 91.9
Dean's Honour's List
NSERC Undergraduate Student Research Award
President's Scholarship

Experience

2025-04 ‑ Present
**Wilderness Union**, *Volunteer Software Developer*, Toronto, ON

typescriptreactpostgresql

Building trip administration and communication software for an outdoor adventure company
  • Led the development of a tool to facilitate communication to trip attendees via email and Discord
2025-07 ‑ 2026-08
**Coalition Inc.**, *Software Engineer II*, Toronto, ON

pythonpostgresql

Backend server development for a cyber-insurance underwriting workbench platform
  • Optimized the data processing pipeline to reduce underwriter wait times by over 95%
  • Implemented REST API endpoints to support business needs, including a comments system, presentation of privacy and vulnerability scan discoveries, and AI classifier feedback collection
  • Created tools for migrating data from Jira, Salesforce, and the legacy format into the new platform
2023-09 ‑ 2025-05
**Lorica Cybersecurity**, *Software Engineer*, Toronto, ON

c++17typescriptpythonrust

R&D for applications of Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE) and Confidential Computing
  • Designed a new algorithm for performing regex search with FHE, a key feature for the product
  • Led refactoring of TypeScript/WebAssembly FHE libraries and development of APIs and SDK
  • Developed a minification tool for the Rego policy language to reduce file sizes by over 90%
  • Designed a data format and implemented parallel AWS S3 object read/write for encrypted data
2019-09 ‑ 2023-08
**University of Waterloo**, *Research Assistant*, Waterloo, ON

c++17cpython

Empirical CS research in automating the Boolean Satisfiability Problem, advised by Dr. Vijay Ganesh
  • Led the design and implementation of an advanced class of SAT solvers using Extended Resolution
  • Advised undergraduate students on the design and implementation of parallelization and machine learning techniques for Satisfaction-Driven Clause Learning SAT solvers

Experience

2023-01 ‑ 2023-08
**University of Waterloo**, *Teaching Assistant*, Waterloo, ON

rustcudapython

Teaching and grading for ECE459 (Programming for Performance) and ECE208 (Discrete Math II)
  • Assisted in teaching Rust and CUDA basics and created automated grading scripts for ECE459
  • Graded assignments and prepared and taught tutorial sessions for 150+ students in ECE208
2020-05 ‑ 2020-08
**NVIDIA Corp.**, *CAD Software Architecture Intern*, Santa Clara, CA

c++14pythonperl

Developed features and implemented optimizations in C++ for GPU performance analysis tools
  • Profiled application using tools such as perf and cachegrind to identify performance bottlenecks
  • Parallelized computation and file I/O operations to speed up overall execution time by 2.5x
2019-09 ‑ 2019-12
**Darkvision Technologies Inc.**, *Software Development Intern*, Vancouver, BC

c++14directx12

Developed data visualization tools and features in C++ for an ultrasound-based 3D imaging device
  • Implemented a tiled HEVC video codec to speed up GPU encoding, increasing throughput by 4x
  • Migrated CPU-based visualization tool to DirectX 12, improving performance and maintainability
2019-01 ‑ 2019-04
**Behaviour Interactive**, *Game Programmer Intern*, Montreal, QC

typescriptpython

Implemented backend features for multiple video games using TypeScript with Node.js
  • Designed a rich presence system to broadcast and log player activity with Redis and DynamoDB
  • Implemented first-party microtransactions for purchasing game items using Nintendo's REST API
2018-05 ‑ 2018-08
**Universe Projects Inc.**, *Software Developer Intern*, Toronto, ON

javakotlin

Added features and improved infrastructure for a cross-platform Java video game
  • Prototyped game item collection infrastructure and developed particle effects and quest systems

Publications

2025
Improving and Understanding the Power of Satisfaction-Driven Clause Learning
JAIR 2025
2024
Extended Resolution Clause Learning via Dual Implication Points
arXiv 2024
2024
A Reinforcement Learning based Reset Policy for CDCL SAT Solvers
arXiv 2024
2023
Prioritized Unit Propagation and Extended Resolution Techniques for SAT Solvers
*Master's Thesis*
2023
Learning Shorter Redundant Clauses in SDCL Using MaxSAT
SAT 2023
2021
On the Hierarchical Structure of Practical Boolean Formulas
SAT 2021

Skills

**Programming languages:**

C/C++, Python, TypeScript, Rust, CUDA, Java

**Human languages:**

English, Cantonese, German

**Web:**

HTML, CSS, JavaScript, REST

**Tools:**

git, Linux, bash, perf, valgrind, gcc, clang

**Technologies:**

Docker, Kubernetes, S3, DynamoDB, PostgreSQL, React, ImGui