After achieving 45 points in the IB Diploma Programme at Park Lane, Simon Ilincev went on to study Computer Science at Cornell University. Now a year and a half into his studies, he shares his experiences of settling into life in the USA, exploring opportunities beyond the classroom and planning his next steps.
From Prague to Ithaca, New York—how did you settle into life as a Cornell student?
Things were definitely a change, what with having to fully look after myself and being so far from home. But the university was very supportive, and I was lucky to have a like-minded Computer Science roommate.
What’s more, the food—very important to me!—is terrific. Cornell ranks among the top ten in the nation for student dining, with around ten dining halls, newly constructed buildings on par with five-star hotels, and a dozen cafés where we can spend our dining credit. There’s plenty of choice.
As for the weather, that wasn’t as much of a change: it’s similar to Prague’s. The scenery is beautiful, too! We have gorges, trails that we hiked during orientation, and even large lakes around campus.
What have been the key academic and social differences between the IB at Park Lane and your first year at Cornell?
Academically, I noticed that there was more lab work in my first year than at Park Lane. I attended weekly discussions led by master’s students for multiple classes, and a couple of these lasted two to three hours at a time.
I also found the curriculum incredibly flexible—I can choose pretty much all of my courses. Of course, my major, Computer Science, has a number of requirements, including four set classes and ten electives. However, almost half of the overall graduation requirements are more broadly related to engineering or general study, so I’ve taken classes like Elementary Persian, Optimizations Research and Mountain Biking.
Don’t tell Cornell this, but I found my first year at university easier than Year 13 of the IBDP! Perhaps that was because there were far fewer large projects and no university applications to complete. Or perhaps it was the scheduling difference: depending on what I choose to do, I may only have one class a day!
What is it like living and studying in the USA compared with the Czech Republic?
There’s quite a range of experiences across different university campuses in the States, and even within them. But speaking for myself and Cornell specifically, Ithaca is a so-called “college town”: roughly half its residents are university students, with around 25,000 of us at Cornell.
This means that I can—and do!—walk anywhere, though possibly just because public transport is nowhere near as good as Prague’s. Overall, the campus is like its own mini-city: very compact, pleasant to walk around, with parks and gardens, and full of people I regularly recognise, which makes me quite happy. I’m very content with where I landed for university.
What are you involved in beyond your studies?
I’ve gotten involved with all sorts of programmes! What stands out most is a student project team that I earn academic credit for, called Cornell Digital Tech & Innovation. It has about 80 students working in seven or eight teams on various software products and has been an excellent source of friendship and professional development.
For my first three semesters, I worked as a developer on CoursePlan, a tool that helps undergraduates track their progress towards graduation. Starting next year, I’ll be a Developer Lead for the entire project team.
I also co-founded an entrepreneurship club called Armada, which brings technical entrepreneurs together each week to work on projects. As part of this, we’ve raised over CZK 100,000, had people drop out and won half a dozen pitch competitions.
Drawing on my experience running Hack Club at Park Lane, I’ve also been co-instructing Trends in Web Development, a software engineering course at Cornell with around 40 students. I’ve taught Czech at the Language Resource Center, too, and received help with my Mandarin in return.
Finally, there are lots of day-to-day social activities, like ice skating, playing board games or even visiting alpaca farms!
What advice would you give IB students about their studies or university applications?
- Aim high and don’t always play it safe—you can achieve more than you think!
- Find a course that you enjoy and that will help you in your future.
- Treat learning as a source of intellectual stimulation rather than a chore. This mindset will do wonders for your studying.
- Once you’re at university, volunteer, apply for internships, meet new people and explore new things!
- US universities care deeply about building community, so get actively involved in school activities, extracurriculars, competitions and so forth.
What are your future plans?
I intend to stick to my Park Lane graduation quote: keep learning like I’ll live forever, but living like I’ll die tomorrow. So, a continued emphasis on studies, interspersed with plenty of adventures and lovely memories.
More broadly, I look forward to an internship with Google in the Bay Area this summer. After graduating, I plan to spend a few years in the industry before possibly launching my own education technology or productivity start-up.
Is there anything you miss about home, school or Prague?
Family and friends! I’m so glad to be back for the winter break to spend time with everyone, as well as to have the freedom to get around and do a bit of travelling.