Augmenting Software Engineering with AI

#AI #software-engineering #education #stem #career

Augmenting Software Engineering with AI
Presented by Harish Vundavalli, Senior Technical Architect, Strategic Education, Inc.

Abstract:
Today, AI is no longer a specialized skill; it’s becoming a baseline expectation across roles. For students graduating and entering the job market, the key challenge is not just learning AI, but showing how they can apply it in real-world scenarios. From an industry perspective, hiring managers are not looking for “AI knowledge” in isolation; they are looking for candidates who can connect AI to business problems and practical use cases.

One of the most important steps is how you present AI on your resume. Instead of listing courses or tools, focus on:

  - What problem you solved
  - How you used AI to solve it
  - What impact it created

For example, saying "built a chatbot using GPT” is less effective than “developed a chatbot that reduced support response time by 30% using AI APIs.” The difference is application and outcome.

Software Professionals should also learn how to map AI concepts to real job scenarios. In the real world, AI is rarely standalone—it is part of a system, a workflow, or a decision-making process.

June 25th, 2026 (times are CST -- for Minnesota)

6:30 PM: Check-in. Socialize.

7:00 PM: Presentation -- Augmenting Software Engineering with AI -- Harish Vundavalli

7:45 PM: Q&A and general discussion.

8:15 PM: Conclusion.