Less than two weeks after graduation, University of New Orleans computer science student Saroj Duwal will begin his first job as a software engineer with Google in Austin, Texas.

Duwal, who earned a master’s degree in computer science this month, will join the Google Play team with a primary focus on building mobile and web applications.

“I am excited to start my new career as a Software Engineer II,” said Duwal. “The coursework at UNO, along with my research experience with different computer science professors, has helped me achieve my goals and prepared me for my new career.”

Duwal was born in Bhaktapur, Nepal and graduated in 2014 from Kanjirowa National High School in Nepal. He was awarded a Homer Hitt Scholarship in 2015 to attend UNO, a full-ride academic scholarship eligible to students with a 3.5 GPA who score at least 32 on the ACT or 1420 on the SAT.

As an undergraduate student, Duwal was awarded the Privateer Undergraduate Research and Scholarly UNO Experience (PURSUE) and the College of Sciences Undergraduate Research Program (CoSURP) scholarships. The two flagship programs introduce undergraduate students to research opportunities.

The scholarships also provided him with valuable experience that helped him secure and prepare for interviews with top corporations, Duwal said.

Duwal completed his bachelor’s degree in May 2019 and started graduate school in January 2020.

Duwal’s master’s research thesis titled, “The Best Defense is a Good Offense: Teaching Phishing Defense Tactics Through a High Agency Playable Experience,” under the direction of Ben Samuel, assistant professor of computer science. As part of the thesis, Duwal developed a game to train participants against phishing by having them play the attacker.