Lessons for a lifetime

My name is Malcolm Lampkin. I’m from Horsham, Pennsylvania, and am a senior in the software development and information management major.

I first came to Pennsylvania College of Technology during high school for a few summer camps, such as Pennsylvania Free Enterprise Week, and I eventually fell in love with the campus. When it came time for me to make a decision about which college I wanted to attend, I knew I wanted to study computers but also have a more hands-on approach when it comes to my education. I knew Penn College would be the perfect fit.

Throughout my time at the college, I’ve learned and grown a lot. I felt a little intimidated by the coursework but, after more than four years, I’m proud of all the things I’ve learned. Penn College has also allowed me to make a ton of connections, whether it’s friends or in the workplace. A coworker at my first internship was a Penn College alumnus who had some of the same professors as I’ve had!

I’ve also learned things I couldn’t have imagined, like learning 20+ coding languages and being able to work in the networking lab with servers and very expensive machines. I’ve also been able to work on interesting projects such as creating a video game, a website and a variety of different applications. I think my favorite was designing a restaurant menu application – it was a challenging process, but the result was rewarding because I got to see a lot of the skills I learned come together in a larger-scale project.

I’ve also been able to become part of the Penn College community through being a college relations assistant and by joining the Association of Professional Programmers (APP). Being part of APP allows me to learn a lot more about programming and software from different perspectives than I was getting in my classes, and has helped me make friends who also studied software. Being a student college relations assistant has helped me see multiple sides of campus and also been able to participate in helping out with The Cupboard.

Doing projects like these makes me feel good to give back to the community that I’m a part of, and to help my fellow students live more comfortably. Thanks to my experience here, I feel as though I’ve made friends and connections I’m going to keep for the rest of my life.

Receiving a scholarship has only made me more committed to finishing my degree, using my skills in the software industry and making all the people that took the time out to invest in my future proud. I’m very thankful for everything here at Penn College and I’m excited to see what’s next for me.