Zeyad's Learning Journal

Zeyad Abdelkader Week 8 Final Journal 02/28/2026 For this assignment, I reviewed the video at https://youtu.be/iS8iI3reEgk and approached it from the perspective of a presentation coach. Overall, I think the team did a strong job covering their topic. The information was organized in a way that made sense, starting with a clear introduction and then building into more detailed explanations. It was easy to follow their main points, and they showed a solid understanding of the material. Their research seemed reliable and relevant, and they supported their ideas well. I do think the presentation could have been even stronger if they had included a few more real-life examples to make the content feel more concrete and relatable. The speakers communicated clearly and at a steady pace, and for the most part, the transitions between team members felt smooth. A little more practice together might have made those transitions even more natural. The video and audio quality were good, and the sli...

 Zeyad Abdelkader 02/24/2026 Part One For our Final Research Video Project, our team had to adjust our plan as we moved forward. At first, we thought meeting once a week would be enough, but we quickly realized we needed more time together to stay organized. So we added extra meetings to make sure everyone understood their responsibilities and stayed on track. That decision really helped us avoid last minute stress. We divided the work by assigning each person a specific section of the presentation. Everyone was responsible for researching their topic and creating their slides. Splitting the work this way made things feel fair and manageable. It also made each of us accountable for completing our part on time. We are planning to meet this Thursday to finish editing the video and make sure everything flows smoothly before submitting it. To communicate, we used group chats and video calls. We also worked on shared documents so everyone could edit and view the materials easily. Ove...

Industry Expert Interview Reflection Report Interviewee: Mustapha Akkari – Software Ops Lead at Rivian Zeyad Abdelkader 02/24/2026 For this assignment, I interviewed Mustapha Akkari, Software Ops Lead at Rivian. I chose to speak with him because I am interested in pursuing a career in software engineering, especially within companies that are building innovative products that have real world impact. Rivian stands out to me because it combines advanced software with electric vehicle technology, and I wanted to understand how software plays a role in such a complex environment. Learning about Mustapha’s journey and responsibilities gave me a clearer picture of what working in this field can look like. Mustapha shared that his career did not follow a perfectly straight path. He started in a traditional software engineering role after completing his computer science degree. In the beginning, his main focus was writing clean code and strengthening his understanding of core computer scienc...

 Zeyad Abdelkader Week 6 Learning Journal CST 349  This week my team met to talk about possible ideas for our capstone project. We shared different suggestions and tried to think of topics that would be realistic and meaningful. Some ideas included creating a mobile app to help students manage their time, building a budgeting tool for young adults, developing a simple chatbot for customer support, and doing a data analysis project about social media trends. We talked about which ideas matched our skills and how much time each project would require. The idea that stood out to me the most was creating a practical app because it would allow us to apply what we have learned in a hands-on way and create something useful. I also liked the data analysis idea because it would help us strengthen our research and presentation skills. The discussion helped us understand each other’s strengths and begin thinking seriously about our final decision. From this week’s activities, I learned i...

Zeyad Abdelkader Week 5 Learning Journal  2/10/2026 Links to teammates' posts: Linda Eric This week I responded to Linda and Eric’s journals and reflected on how their goals compare to mine. It was helpful to see their long-term planning and self-awareness, and it gave me ideas for improving my own goal setting. Possible Capstone Projects: AI Study Assistant for Online Students – A web-based application that helps students organize assignments, generate personalized study schedules, and summarize notes using artificial intelligence. Smart Campus Navigation App – A mobile app that provides an interactive campus map, helping students locate classrooms, labs, and other important resources quickly and easily. Personal Finance Tracker with Analytics – A budgeting application that tracks income and expenses, analyzes spending habits, and provides predictions to help users manage their finances more effectively. Learning Journal Update: Learning Journal Update – Week Reflection This we...

 Zeyad Abdelkader Learning Journal Part 1,2,3,4 -  My educational goal in the computer science program is to graduate with a solid, practical understanding of core concepts like algorithms, data structures, software design, and systems. I want to feel confident breaking down complex problems and turning them into efficient solutions. Along the way, I hope to earn strong grades, build meaningful projects, and become comfortable teaching myself new technologies. Beyond graduation, my goal is to continue learning so my skills stay relevant as the field evolves. My career goal is to work in a computer science or software engineering role where I can solve challenging problems and see the impact of my work. I imagine myself collaborating with a technical team, contributing to important projects, and eventually taking on more responsibility in designing systems or mentoring others. No matter the specific job title, I want to be known as someone dependable with strong problem-solving...