Hobbies and interests
Robotics
Coding And Computer Science
Game Design and Development
Aviation
Aerospace
Crafting
Cooking
Video Editing and Production
Photography and Photo Editing
National Honor Society (NHS)
Flying And Aviation
Gaming
Computer Science
Information Technology (IT)
STEM
Reading
Science
Academic
Crafts
Cookbooks
How-To
Self-Help
I read books multiple times per month
Tanjai Ploykao
4,855
Bold Points1x
FinalistTanjai Ploykao
4,855
Bold Points1x
FinalistBio
My name is Tanjai Ploykao. I came from a beautiful country called Thailand. Thailand is famous for delicious foods such as Pad Thai and Mango Sticky Rice. During the 2008 financial crisis, my family and I moved to the United States of America. I watched my parents struggle to make up for living expenses to support the family. My parents work hard, so they can help me stay in the US. My parents see that the US offers an abundance of education opportunities. I was able to see the difference between education in Thailand and the US. I value education because knowledge gives me skill and power to help others in the community. I am a student at the University of Maryland Global Campus. My major of study is Computer Science. My favorite subjects to study are programming and cooking. Besides being a student, I am serving in the United States Air Force. I hope to learn and explore many opportunities to boost my skill in coding and share the world. Some of the code I learned, I am applying to my job. By joining Bold.org, Bold.org will help support my journey and goal.
Education
University of Maryland Global Campus
Associate's degree programMajors:
- Computer Science
Miscellaneous
Desired degree level:
Bachelor's degree program
Graduate schools of interest:
Transfer schools of interest:
Majors of interest:
- Computer Science
- Computer Programming
- Security Science and Technology
- Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management
Career
Dream career field:
Computer Software
Dream career goals:
Software Developer
Airman
United States Air Force2020 – Present4 years
Sports
Esport
Club2021 – Present3 years
Robotic
Intramural2015 – 20172 years
Awards
- SkunkWord Robotic 1983 Championship
Research
Rocket
American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Club — Rocket team member2014 – 2015
Public services
Volunteering
National Honor Society — member2015 – 2016Volunteering
Museum of Flight — ambassador2013 – 2015
Future Interests
Volunteering
Entrepreneurship
Ben Brock Memorial Scholarship
My name is Tanjai Ploykao, and I am from the city of Phuket in Thailand. Phuket is approximately 8,630 miles away from the United States. Thailand is surrounded by Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, and Malaysia, and is famous for many delicious foods such as Pad Thai and Tom Yum. Food has brought me closer to other cultures, and although I have been to several countries, I am always interested in exploring more of the world.
My passion for computer science and the STEM fields has been building since I was a child, but it really bloomed during my high school years. I joined my high school’s robotics team and was assigned to the programming division of that team, and as my knowledge of coding expanded, my interest expanded proportionally as well. I used my grasp of programming and physics to help my team reach national championship level competitions. I learned to apply my programming and mathematics knowledge to my school’s American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics club during my freshman and sophomore years. My ambition was to achieve a degree in computer science once I graduated, but I was frustrated by citizenship complications as I was not yet an American citizen.
My family has several connections with the military, including both my grandfather and my sister who served in the United States Army. I joined the United States Air Force in 2020 after my sister's contract ended during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. When I joined the USAF, I was interested in many jobs in the cyber and aviation fields. Unfortunately, at the time of my enlistment, I still was not a citizen of the United States, and as such, I was severely limited in the jobs I could get. I finally got my citizenship in April 2022, but at this time I have been unable to secure a job in the cyber field.
Even though I do not work in the cyber field, I do my best to work past that, taking on projects that allow me to bring forward solutions from a computer science perspective. I applied for an internship called StratoFi that asked an airman to come up with an innovative idea to help improve the USAF. I developed an idea to help create an effective process for USAF fitness testing in order to greatly reduce human error, and was selected for the internship. I developed an app that I am still working on, and although the internship has now ended, I continue my work in the hope that I can innovate a military process that has been stale for too long. The StratoFi Internship has opened the door for me to utilize the skills I developed in high school, an opportunity I am truly grateful for.
Presently, I am working toward a degree in computer science. The military, being the established institution it is, certainly does not make pursuing my dream easy, but that will not stop me from achieving it. I look forward to solving problems and inventing solutions in the future, and I am grateful to qualify for the Ben Brock Memorial Scholarship. Thank you for your consideration.