Today was a wild day. I had flown back in from a debate tournament really late the night before, and I had not really slept that much on the trip itself (case writing was pretty last minute). But in the words of George Washington, “better to offer no excuse than a bad one.” I woke up a bit late, and did regretfully show up seven minutes late; parking was horrendous as well. I apologize to both the SAS institution and Cary Academy for not representing the Charger way. However, I was pleasantly surprised when I was greeted by a smiling Mrs. Dougherty (University Recruiting Director) and the six smiling faces of Matthew Cinoman, Kevin Chen, Matthew Schaeffer, Megan Tunley, Jessica Judge, and Will Parker. That’s when I knew it was going to be a good day.
We first began with an intro session to what SAS was all about. Through the videos, I began to get a better grasp of what data analytics is really all about. I’m pretty sure at its core, it’s all about isolating a multitude of variables and then finding the relationship between the important ones through a series of graphs and info charts. I thought the most intriguing part of this field however, was the human aspect that was still necessary in an industry that’s so saturated by technology. There are still data analysts that have to interpret the data and convey the information to the people that need it, instead of the computer just churning out conclusions and then printing them out on a piece of paper. As AI continues to grow that might not ring as true, but it was comforting to know that as of now, there is still a place for humans in the world of data analytics.
After this session we had lunch in the C building. It was free (although SAS employees have to pay, it’s still very cheap) and delicious; an unbeatable combo. Another thing about SAS’s amenities is that they have soda available everywhere. For a kid that grew up obsessed with sodas it’s a dream come true. However, because of athletic pursuits (haha), I am a bit more health conscious now.
After lunch I went to the finance division of SAS. I was toured around by John Wilson, and the first person I met really just seemed genuinely interested in me. We discussed potential majors, and I got a better idea of what options were available. She majored in accounting, and she does more project based work. I also learned that FASBY kind of standardizes the field of accounting. Then I met with Mr. Wilson and we talked about basketball, then he showed me a spreadsheet. From what I can tell, I’m pretty sure it did mainly subtraction and found percent change. Lastly, I met with a guy who was super nice. He apparently keeps track of all the expenses, but I thought the coolest part was that he also had to track how much all of SAS’s assets depreciate. In general, these people were incredible at using Excel, and inspired me to learn the power of the spreadsheet.
*I apologize for any grammar mistakes, I’m a bit tired