Meet Farzad
What Starts Here Does Change the World
I chose to come to UT Austin because I knew it was the best public institution in the state of Texas and has a very prestigious engineering program. However, I had no idea what it meant to be a Longhorn and never thought I would have such a rewarding experience at this university.
While UT Austin is one of the top universities in terms of academics and research and competes at a very high level with other highly ranked institutions, its campus life and out-of-classroom experience is life-changing and very unique. There are infinite opportunities on this campus to become a better person and make an impact in the community, while still having a good time.
Farzad's tips
Studying
Don’t study in your room. Go to a library or another study area. Occasionally, study with others.
Living on campus
- I highly recommend that all freshman live on campus for at least one year and then consider moving out to an off campus dormitory or apartment.
- Get to know your roommate, as well as your resident assistant.
- Eat at each dining hall at least once; they don’t all serve the same food, so you have a variety of choices.
Transportation around campus
Austin has a great bus system and having a car is not necessary at all. You can ride the UT shuttle or the Capital Metro buses free of charge using your UT ID.
Balancing studying, friends, work, and family
Do not try to do everything in one semester. Trust me, taking too many hours while having a job and getting involved with student organizations doesn’t work very well. Try to have a balance. And remember, getting a good education is the reason you are here.
A Friendly Campus
Something that surprised me from the moment I stepped on the 40 Acres and continues to astonish me is the sense of friendliness and liveliness that exists on our campus. The atmosphere makes me feel comfortable because of how everyone treats each other, which makes me think we are all friends.
From the warm welcome I received when I attended orientation, to the kindness of my professors, it all made me feel comfortable, and even to some extent, makes me feel like I can call this place home. The fact that most people here are very nice, social and respectful still stuns me and makes me love this university more and more every day.
Learn to be a Leader
Here, while you learn the technicalities of your career of choice, you also learn how to be a leader and how to apply your knowledge to real world problems and work on solving them effectively. Moreover, the campus life and atmosphere induces students to work harder and intensifies their will to excel. Therefore, I sincerely believe what starts here changes the world because in addition to our highly ranked academic unit, we have an extraordinary campus full of great students who want to make a difference in the lives of others and go beyond all limits to succeed in life.
More about Farzad
Personal background
I was born in Tehran, Iran and lived there for 16 years until I moved to Katy, Texas. My ethnicity is Persian, and I identify myself as Muslim.
How I learned more about UT Austin
Initially, I learned about UT Austin through my high school counselor’s office and consequently visited the UT Austin campus the summer before my senior year in high school; that was when I started to seriously consider UT Austin as my college of choice. After that, I began learning more about UT Austin by visiting its web site and looking at the different brochures that I received. All these things combined contributed to me deciding to apply to The University of Texas at Austin.
How I picked my major
I always loved math and in high school I grew an interest in physics and that led me to my major, Engineering. I picked Electrical Engineering because I always had an interest in how electronic devices, especially computers, work. This interest, plus the fact that electrical engineers are the only engineers who don’t have to take chemistry or biology, induced me to pick Electrical Engineering as my major.
My biggest challenge
During my first year of college I always had this feeling that I didn't have enough time and that my days would end in the blink of an eye without me getting anything done. I resolved this problem by looking at my every day activities closely and trying to figure out why I ran out of time. The first obvious answer was that I was over-involved on campus, and while I have more free time compared to high school, I need to study more as well. Therefore, I couldn't get involved in everything that interests me.
Secondly, I realized that not planning and scheduling my tasks for the following day causes a little bit of confusion and delays the process of performing my tasks. However, I was able to overcome this problem at the beginning of my sophomore year and now I have plenty of time to do well in my academics and get involved with non-academic activities at the same time.
Want to Contact Farzad?
Send Farzad an e-mail at yousefifarzad@gmail.com.