Honor Society® member
Rishika Vats
- computer science
- Class of 2026
- Lubbock, TX
Member since October 2026
About
I am a senior at Texas Tech University studying computer science with minors in mathematics and artificial intelligence. My work spans software engineering, AI and data research, technical product management, and student support. I have built tools serving more than 2,000 students, worked with research data from seven universities, and developed reporting systems that reduced manual work and identified meaningful cost savings. Outside of work and research, I teach STEM in local schools, mentor students, and serve my campus community. I am especially interested in computational finance, quantitative decision-making, and building technical systems that are rigorous, useful, and understandable to the people who rely on them. I care deeply about ownership, honesty, empathy, and making opportunities easier for others to access.
Education
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Texas Tech University
computer science
2023 – Present
Honors and awards
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Dash for De’Jah Foundation Scholarship
Selected as a recipient of the De’Jah Foundation’s $10,000 scholarship in recognition of academic achievement, character, and commitment to making a positive impact.
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R. Blanton Research Endowed Scholarship
Competitive endowed award ($4,000) recognizing undergraduates engaged in meaningful research. Selected for demonstrated research contribution and academic standing.
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academic achievement award
Hackathon award ($1,000) recognizing resilience, iteration, and problem-solving under pressure. Given for the strongest example of learning and adapting through setbacks during the competition.
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Presidential Merit Scholarship Award
Renewable merit award of $4,000/yr, with a Non-Resident Tuition Waiver valued at roughly $18,000/yr. Awarded for sustained academic excellence and renewed each year based on continued performance.
Goals and interests
- Career goal
I plan to begin my career in technically rigorous roles such as software engineering, AI/ML engineering, quantitative development, or quantitative research. Long term, I want to work at the intersection of computation, mathematics, and finance while also creating programs that help people better understand money, risk, and financial decisions.
- Graduate school interests
Computational finance, quantitative finance, applied probability, optimization, machine learning, financial systems, and responsible use of AI in decision-making. I am interested in graduate programs that combine computer science and mathematics with a deeper study of markets, risk, and uncertainty.
- Outside the classroom
Swimming, working out, reading about financial markets, investing, political economy, and watch collecting.
Experience
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engineering intern
Texas Tech College of Arts & Sciences- Manage the CISER undergraduate research website and coordinate its migration into the College of Arts & Sciences site.
Aug 2026 – Present
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Technical Product Management Intern
Sineng Electric USA Analyzed competing energy products, translated findings into product priorities, and built reporting dashboards that reduced weekly reporting time by 50% and helped identify about $40,000 in savings.
May 2026 – Aug 2026
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Fellow Success Intern
Break Through Tech - I build technical tools and support systems for a program serving 2,000+ fellows, including a resource-based support assistant that reduced manual response time by 60% and a centralized data workflow that saved hundreds of staff hours.
Feb 2026 – Present
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Data Science Research Assistant
CASFER NSF Engineering Research Center Standardized 40+ research datasets from seven institutions and helped build shared data systems supporting 58 experiments and NSF reporting.
Dec 2025 – Aug 2026
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Software Engineering Intern
Texas Tech Academic Innovation & Student Success Built and maintained React/Python tools used by about 300 staff and resolved production issues that saved roughly five hours of manual work each week.
May 2025 – Jul 2025
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Software Engineering Intern
ODeX Shipping Developed production software features using Java, Python, JavaScript, APIs, and relational databases
May 2024 – Jul 2024
Volunteering
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Mentor 12 incoming students, answer questions before and after arrival, connect them with campus resources, and organize community-building activities.
Global Guides, Texas Tech International Student Life
Jan 2026 – Present
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Teach weekly hands-on STEM lessons in local schools, help with outreach events, and connect students and families with engineering and college resources.
Outreach Raiders, Whitacre College of Engineering
Jan 2024 – Present
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Supported oncology patients in West Texas through treatment-center visits, handwritten cards, care packages, fundraising, and companionship.
JoyCentric
Sep 2023 – Apr 2025
Languages
- English (US) Fluent
- Hindi Advanced
Additional information
Organizations
