How Research, Mentorship, and Faith Shaped a Future in Tech
Ael Lee '24 with her mentors at Twistthink, a consultancy in Grand Rapids, where she secured an internship while at Calvin and a job upon graduating.
This fall, Ael Lee ‘24 will begin a master’s program in computer science at Johns Hopkins University.
Graduate education was on Lee’s radar when she originally arrived in the United States back in 2021 to study at Calvin University. But her path to grad school proved to be less linear than she anticipated.
A gut feeling
She describes a path shaped more by instinct than certainty: as a child she dreamed of becoming a cardiac surgeon, then shifted toward engineering, only to find it didn’t feel right. Knowing she wanted to stay in STEM but unsure where she fit, she ultimately chose computer science almost by process of elimination—following her gut through uncertainty rather than a clear, steady plan.
“I tend to listen to my gut feeling a lot,” said Lee.
So, she started down that path. But she needed to move quickly. As an international student on a limited visa, Lee knew time was crucial in figuring out a path.
The turning point
The summer after her sophomore year, she did a research project alongside Professor Ken Arnold. She describes that summer as a turning point in her life. During that time, she taught herself to develop software and discovered she genuinely enjoyed the creative, hands-on work. Coursework that followed helped confirm her instincts, showing her she could see herself in industry – even without immediately pursuing a master’s degree.
“That’s part of the reason why after my junior year, I did an internship instead of another summer of research,” said Lee, who interned at Twistthink, a consultancy in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
At the same time, her earlier research experience continued to pull her toward academia, and together these experiences helped her see a future that combined both building and research.
Crucial connections
While she was building her capacity to launch her career, she soon discovered the connections she was making at Calvin would prove to be most critical to her future success.
As an academically driven student, Lee said she spent a lot of time utilizing her professor’s office hours. “When something wasn’t working with an assignment, I’d go and chat and talk with them and they’d help me with what I was struggling through,” said Lee. “I think building that one-on-one relationship with my professors was one of the most valuable things.”
It allowed them to get to know Lee and help her not only master her area of study but also understand herself better.
“Of course you are there to learn,” said Lee of her time at Calvin, “but it’s so important to build relationships with professors who are also experts in their field, who know what they are doing and who can sometimes see things in you that you never see.”
Those relationships paid dividends, resulting in invitations to be a lab assistant and research partner for Professor Arnold and much advising and personal letters of recommendation from both Arnold and Professor Norman.
“Those are two of the many professors that I’m super grateful for. They deserve a million honorable mentions,” said Lee.
Long lasting value
Those connections helped Lee secure a job immediately after graduation with the same company where she had interned. They also proved valuable when she later decided to return to school for a master’s degree, helping her gain admission to a prestigious program at Johns Hopkins University.
But perhaps the greatest value Lee experienced at Calvin was one that’s not expected in higher education in general but has immeasurable and everlasting value.
“Being an international student, being away from my family it was a season of one-on-one time with God … I grew up in a Christian family, my dad is a pastor, but I didn’t have as much of a one-on-one relationship with God, it was through my parents most of the time,” said Lee. “At Calvin, being alone, that set the tone for me to grow that relationship, to talk to him, whine to him, say something to him. That was the place where I grew my relationship with God. If I hadn’t gone to Calvin, I don’t think I would’ve developed the one-on-one relationship with God that I now have.”
For Lee, Calvin not only helped her launch her career, but also a purpose-filled life.