Computer and business engineer — studying AI in Chicago

AI grad student with engineering and business roots.

I completed Polytechnic University of Madrid's (UPM) double degree in Computer Engineering and Business Management with a strong GPA. Chicago is where I'm currently studying full-time: the M.S. in Artificial Intelligence at Illinois Tech runs alongside the Master in Computer Engineering back at UPM. Logic and math have always been my comfort zone, and during the degree I leaned equally into programming labs and the entrepreneurship and finance courses that teach how products survive outside the classroom.

  • Plenty of industry context from Oxigent Technologies and DNV Green Power Monitor; Currently a full-time student in Chicago
  • Hands-on with Node.js, Angular, Python, MongoDB, RabbitMQ, and Apache Airflow.
  • Open to US-based roles starting May 2026.
Email me LinkedIn GitHub

What keeps me motivated:

  1. Putting real effort into every class instead of aiming for the minimum grade.
  2. Applying coursework like Intelligent Systems and Advanced Software Engineering directly to side projects.
  3. Showing up prepared when teams need someone to own backend reliability.

About

Clear software, simple explanations.

Madrid is home, and it's where I completed the double Computer Engineering + Business Management degree at UPM. Chicago is where I study right, finishing the Illinois Tech Master in Artificial Intelligence alongside the Computer Engineering master at UPM.

I've always gravitated toward logic problems and math-heavy coursework, so the engineering side never felt abstract. During the degree I fell in love with programming labs and algorithm design, but the business path also hooked me on entrepreneurship, finance and how companies decide where to invest.

I like projects where data engineers, product leads and researchers sit at the same table. The business training helps me translate constraints; the engineering training keeps me honest about the effort involved.

Experience

Roles

Consultant, Junior Associate - Oxigent Technologies

Oct 2024 - Jul 2025 - Madrid & remote - Client: DNV Green Power Monitor

  • Worked end to end on backend and frontend features using Node.js and Angular within an international Agile team.
  • Refactored core logic to support recursive and nested data structures for enterprise renewable energy clients.

Software Developer Intern - DNV Green Power Monitor

Feb 2024 - Aug 2024 - Madrid

  • Migrated data-loading microservices from TypeScript to Python, improving Apache Airflow reliability.
  • Developed backend APIs and dashboards with Node.js, Angular, MongoDB and RabbitMQ.

Projects

Personal work

Minishell

UNIX-style shell in C with piping, environment management, and defensive error handling.

Repository

JavaScript Processor

Parser and interpreter in Java that reproduces a subset of JavaScript semantics.

Repository

GitHub - pacots

Workspace for lab assignments and notebooks that extend my coursework.

github.com/pacots

Education

Dual master's path

M.S. in Artificial Intelligence - Illinois Institute of Technology

Aug 2025 - Jul 2026 - GPA 4.0 (Fall semester)

Coursework in Machine Learning, Deep Learning, and Big Data systems.

Master in Computer Engineering - Polytechnic University of Madrid

Sep 2024 - Jul 2026 - GPA 3.4

Part of the double master program with IIT focused on distributed systems and optimization.

  • Emerging Technologies and Business Opportunities
  • Intelligent Systems
  • Intelligent Data Analysis
  • Interactive Systems
  • Embedded and Ubiquitous Systems
  • Data Processes
  • Advanced Software Engineering

Double Degree in Computer Engineering & Business Management - UPM

Sep 2019 - Jul 2024 - GPA 3.5

Completed both theses: fuzzy preference decision-making (engineering) and capital structure optimization (business).

Skills

Everyday stack

Languages

Python, Java, TypeScript, SQL, C, C++.

AI & data

Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Apache Airflow, MongoDB, RabbitMQ.

Tools

Git, Docker basics, Kubernetes, Bash scripting.

Languages spoken

Spanish (native) - English (C1 IELTS + Cambridge).

Scholarships & activities

Communities

IEEE - Eta Kappa Nu

Honor society member.

Excellence Scholarship

Community of Madrid (2020-2023).

ACM Team Programming

Competitor in 2021 and 2022.

Bayer–Agorize Open Innovation

2022 participant focused on data science.

Contact

Let's keep it simple

Email: sara.rod.rojo@gmail.com

Phone: +1 (872) 200 0481 - Chicago, Illinois

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sara-rodriguez-rojo

GitHub: github.com/pacots

I reply within a day and I'm happy to share references or coursework details.