After doing a single Google search about which career paid the most amount of money, Thaddeus Sandidge (25) decided on a profession in computer science. Little did he know, it was a decision that would ultimately lead to a passion for software engineering Sandidge didn’t even know he had.
Thaddeus Sandidge was born in Anchorage, Alaska but lived in Nampa, Idaho for most of his life before moving to San Diego for college. He excelled in high school, and was the valedictorian of his graduating class. Sandidge was still relatively unsure about where he wanted to go after high school, but the decision was easy once Sandidge saw the view of the ocean for himself.
One of the other perks of PLNU for Sandidge came from his mother’s position at Northwest Nazarene University, the sister school of Point Loma that offers a tuition remission program for students whose parents work for either school. Because of this program, choosing Loma was an easy choice.
His first job at PLNU was in the Office of Instructional Technology, where he worked for Katie Jacobsen. This position consisted of assisting professors in setting up their Canvas and other technology needs for faculty and students. In addition to this job, Sandidge was very involved in intramural sports and the Student Senate during his junior year.
His academic excellence during high school set him up for success in college, and Sandidge graduated this past spring with honors, sharing a special distinction with a small number of students.
“I just really like to do the best I can in my courses, so I ended up with some long nights of studying,” Sandidge said. “I was able to come away tied with a couple other super talented students with the highest cumulative undergraduate GPA, which I was really proud of.”
Over one summer in Boston, Sandidge was able to participate in a “hackathon,” a competitive entrepreneurship event where students pitch their technological business ideas to a board of judges. Sandidge placed 3rd at the Harvard event and most recently placed first with other PLNU students at the SDSU Big Data Hackathon. The theme for this event was how to improve access to healthcare, and Sandidge’s team pitched an app that gives people access to order non-emergency transportation in the same fashion as an Uber or a Lyft, giving patients more access to routine appointments.
As for the computer science department itself, there’s a lot of amazing people in there. At the end of the day, I think they really do care. They care about you, and they want you to be successful. It shows through 100%.
During his time at PLNU, Sandidge was also able to participate in various internships that revolved around software engineering. Sandidge was first a software engineer intern at a company called ZoeyComm which specializes in IT consulting. The second internship was as a research intern for the Georgia Tech Research Institute which was also a technical support role, where Sandidge essentially walked into the office and told them to give him a job.
“So, for that job, I actually walked through the front door of the office and just basically got the receptionist to let me talk to the hiring manager,” Sandidge said. “And somehow, they hired me there.”
Sandidge’s third and final internship, which led to his current full-time position, was with Visat as a software engineer intern.
The internship at Visat was the result of a direct connection Sandidge had made while at Point Loma. After reaching out to Dr. Liz Holbrook, Sandidge was connected with an accounting alumnus from PLNU who is the manager of early recruiting at Visat.
Sandidge connected with this student, Allie Meersman, and interviewed for a few positions which he initially did not get. He described how he felt that he had lost out on his best chance for a career.
“Allie Meersman was just the most fantastic supporter and gave me the opportunity to interview and match with a couple different roles,” Sandidge stated. “I interviewed for a couple positions in Carlsbad and did not get them. I was crushed. That was my only chance.”
However, after answering an unexpected call in class one morning, Sandidge accepted an internship in Marlborough, Massachusetts and spent the summer of 2024 near the Boston area working for Visat as a software engineering intern.
Sandidge’s current position involves working with network encryption products. Each of his internship experiences had familiarized him with protecting the data of large companies; now, he works to improve test tools for government software encryption to keep governmental and big corporations’ information secure.
The ultimate goal for Sandidge is to be able to combine his software engineering background with his competitive nature and passion for finance. Quantitative analyst is the dream position for Sandidge, despite the difficulty of entering the field. For right now, he is happy where he is and learning things every day. He has recently begun a master’s program in Computer Science at UC San Diego.
Looking back, even though college can be a very intimidating and sometimes isolating experience, Sandidge felt that Point Loma provided great opportunities to connect with other people and to grow. Especially after noticing how his high school friends were struggling at big colleges, Sandidge felt especially grateful for the tight-knit community that Point Loma provides. Sandidge expressed his appreciation for the faculty’s devotion to student success and well being.
“As for the computer science department itself, there’s a lot of amazing people in there…” Sandidge stated. “At the end of the day, I think they really do care. They care about you, and they want you to be successful. It shows through 100%.”
