Simon Sammel Email & Phone Number

Despite now being a full stack engineer with experience in Python, JS, SQL, React/Redux and API development; becoming a software engineer was never my initial plan. Even with it taking me by surprise, I have found it to be a really fulfilling adventure. With a background in healthcare and ecology as well as being an avid gardener, I am hopeful to apply my skills to expanding healthcare access to those who need it most or improving our food systems to support all of us for generations to come.My first exploration into software engineering started at an internship I decided to apply to after reviewing prerequisites for a microbiology Master's program and seeing that either Python or R would be required. At this internship, I quickly realized that the puzzle solving that came with software development was exactly what I had been hoping for in a career. I enjoy learning about the systems I work with and figuring out how to best leverage the intricacies of each one. I decided to switch my major to computer science and take on a full time position at the same company I had started as an intern at. After completing the project I led for over a year at Trajector Services, I took some time to care for a family member, as well as getting engaged and moving. Once the dust settled, I started at App Academy where I built 3 major projects: a community garden platform modeled after nightly rental platforms, a pet friendly business review website alongside Tracey Beard and Carmen Shiu, and a direct primary care practice centric electronic medical record application.Software engineering has come to mean so much more to me than I anticipated- especially considering I started this adventure only expecting a 12 week internship. It has become the thing I gush about to my best friend, or what my grandmother brags about to her neighbors. It is the way I can endlessly grow while I help others grow through the impact I have, and that means the world to me.