Successful Alumni
Over a third of our math majors immediately go on to graduate school, and roughly another third earn secondary teaching certificates and proceed immediately to teaching jobs. The remaining third enter a variety of careers spread widely across business and industry.
Students graduating from Coe's computer science program have gone on to become programmers, systems consultants, computer animators and engineers. Others have continued on to graduate school for advanced degrees in computer science and information security, or to graduate school to further their education in other areas such as architecture and material science.
Erin Lang graduated in 2017 with degrees in mathematics and business administration, as well as a minor in economics. She works as an actuary for UnitedHealth Group in Minnetonka, Minnesota.
“With the small class sizes and all of the close friendships that develop after being at such a wonderful, small school like Coe, it is hard not to learn how to be dependable and accountable. These are lifelong skills that are not only helping me in my career, they are helping me with life in general. Every single professor and staff member that I interacted with at Coe made a difference in my life, and I wouldn't be where I am today without every single one of them.”
Nicholas J. Steichen graduated in 2017 with a degree in computer science and now is completing an engineering residency with Google.
“The Computer Sciences Department prepped me by giving homework that was based around real-world examples, pointing me in the right direction when I was stuck on things and taking the time to look at project I made on the side to suggest changes.”
Mikaela Cashman graduated in 2014, double majoring in mathematics and computer science, with a minor in physics. She was involved in Math Club and served as president in her senior year. A native of St. Paul, Minnesota, Mikaela is in graduate school at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln pursuing a Ph.D. in computer science with hopes of being a researcher in industry.
"A liberal arts education provides more than a diploma. You leave with a greater respect, understanding and love for the world. At Coe I not only developed relationships with peers from all different backgrounds, but with the faculty and staff as well. I was not just a number, but part of the Coe family."
Matt Burch graduated in 2011 with a double major in computer science and sociology. After Coe, he began working in St. Louis at The Boeing Company as part of the Information Technology Career Foundation Program (ITCFP) before transitioning into a role as a software engineer. In December 2013, Matt completed his master's in computer science from Washington University in St. Louis.
"College is a defining time in life, and Coe's liberal arts education broadens your view of the world while allowing you to explore different interests. The investment of the professors in your education and success helps you get the most from your college experience and prepare you for life post graduation."
Thomas Britton graduated in 2009 with a Bachelor of Arts degree, majoring in mathematics and physics. A native of Cedar Rapids, Thomas had already taken a few classes at the college while a senior in high school, providing the opportunity to become well acquainted with the campus and its faculty. He is pursuing a Ph.D. in high energy physics at Syracuse University. More specifically, he is part of the LHCb collaboration at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research in Switzerland.
"Coe is a small place full of opportunity. From the professors who both challenge and support you at every point in your college career to the student organizations that enhance your experience, Coe will make you better, if only you agree to step outside your comfort zone and seek out the opportunities that await."
Samuel Hegland graduated in 2008 with majors in mathematics and physics and a minor in computer science. A native of Cedar Rapids, Samuel remained in the city following graduation and started working for Transamerica as an actuary. In August 2013, he became a fully credentialed actuary with the designation FSA (Fellow of the Society of Actuaries). In the same month, he relocated to Bermuda for a two- to three-year work position and planned on returning to Transamerica in Cedar Rapids.
"People from small, private colleges are not normally prepared for the actuarial career field, but the education I received at Coe was much better than ‘normal.’ The attention provided by my professors, and the varying perspectives that they offered, really taught me to approach problems in a unique way. I no longer try to find THE solution. Instead, I try to find an array of solutions because my liberal arts background taught me that it's very rare to be 100 percent correct in the real world. The professors at Coe took the sciences and made them appear as an art form and not just a rigid set of rules. That difference has meant the world to me."