Save is proud to welcome Rice University’s Durga Parulekar, Yifei Ren, and Anusha Muddapati to our development team.
Durga, Anusha, and Yifei are all completing their Master of Computer Science degrees at Rice University and will join Save’s team of developers to build out the technology Save runs on and more efficiently utilize Save’s internal data.
Prior to joining, Save connected with all three students to learn more about their education, favorite development projects, what they hope to learn while at Save, and how Houston helps them feel connected to their home overseas.
Their computer science education will help the Save team improve our products and account offerings. With Anusha’s data scientist background, she will focus on how to best utilize the internal data Save has in order to improve the Save app and online dashboard’s performance, as well as connect with potential customers online while working on the marketing team’s paid strategy goals.
“When I interviewed with Save, I loved how the team discussed how important the data scientist role is,” Anusha said. “I wanted to work for a firm where my work is valued and has an impact on making business decisions and Save seemed to be the perfect place for that. A team that believes in fresh talent and a role that perfectly aligns with my future goals and interests made me decide to take up the offer.
“I hope to expand my academic learning by solving real fintech problems, which I believe is a great start for an aspiring data scientist,” she continued. “Along with improving my technical expertise by collaborating with the marketing, managing, and development teams, I look forward to an amazing networking opportunity this summer.”
Their degrees in computer science encompass topics like programming languages, computer networks, cybersecurity, database management, artificial intelligence, and machine learning. Durga and Yifei will use their experiences across these topics to help the development team build out additional portals for Save’s customer support and development teams to better serve our customers and troubleshoot issues when there are any.
“This degree provides me with the building blocks for every pillar in the tech industry,” Durga said. “Having this knowledge will allow me to leverage technology into projects that benefit society.”
After all, benefitting society is the ultimate goal of Save. Save was founded on the premise that investment vehicles that are traditionally only reserved for professional investors, should be available to everyday people with less risk. This is yet another factor that attracted the Rice University students to Save.
“When thinking about how I will be contributing to products that make many peoples’ lives better, I feel proud, excited, and accomplished,” Yifei said. “Additionally, I like the team at Save. They all love what they are doing, and they are highly experienced in the financial industry. For example, the CEO and founder, Michael Nelskyla, has worked as the Managing Director at multiple top-tier investment banks. I firmly believe that Michael, the COO Adam Watts, the Director of Engineering Sachin Kulkarni, and other colleagues can drive the company to success together.”
Durga mirrored this sentiment saying, “I think Save is a game-changer for people with no experience in investing to get an opportunity to reap the benefits of higher returns. To use myself as an example, the world of finance is a mystery to me, and I am very excited to learn more about finance and investing.”
Additionally, all three students are a great reflection of Houston’s vast diversity as a city. Each student joined Rice University from different parts of the world after completing their past degrees. Durga came to Houston after finishing her Bachelor and Master of Science in Information Technology at Mumbai universities. Yifei’s education has allowed him to travel from his home country of China to the Netherlands, and Anusha completed her undergraduate in Visakhapatnam, India.
With being so far from home, Durga, Yifeo, and Anusha can get a bit homesick while at Rice University, but thankfully, Houston provides an ideal culinary landscape to stay connected to hometown cuisine. Additionally, the Save team benefits from their authentic restaurant recommendations.
“I miss the variety of flavorful street food options that I used to have in India since I’m a vegetarian,” Durga said. “I frequently visit a restaurant called Shiv Sagar on Hillcroft. Shiv Sagar offers a wide selection of authentic Indian street food. My favorite dish there is Vada Pav, which is an Indian burger with a spicy potato patty.”
For Yifei, it’s Tiger Noodle House in Rice Village. “The food there is really delicious and authentic. It tastes just like the food in China,” he said. “Most restaurants in China Town are also good, but they are too far away from Rice University, so I don’t often go there.”
Save continues to invest in the professional development of local Houston students. If you’re interested in Save’s future positions, follow us on LinkedIn.
