Hi, my name is
Fariha.
I build things for the web.
Where I’ve Worked
Software Engineer Intern @
Jan - April 2023
- Receiving compensation from my last two co-ops allowed me to invest in stocks (even though I had an all-time $300 loss the last time I checked) through Wealthsimple, and I grew to love their products. Additionally, I realized my affinity for the fast-paced environment of startups, making Wealthsimple, a Canadian fintech startup, the obvious choice for my next co-op.
- At Wealthsimple, I became part of the Managed Investing team. My primary project was to edit the Discover page to increase traffic to managed investing portfolios using React Native. Later, I refactored my own code to incorporate Contentful, which provides a no-code interface for stakeholders to update content and assets independently in real time, without needing direct developer intervention. This process also required implementing TypeScript data validation types and new actions and reducers into Redux. The project significantly increased user engagement, propelling traffic to exceed 1 million visitors — a milestone that marked significant success in my career.
- Furthermore, I undertook the migration of Ruby on Rails services for Invest app deprecation messaging, ensuring a smooth transition for over 230,000 users. I also contributed to the development of our Design System by creating reusable components and assets for cross-repository use, significantly streamlining the development process.
Software Engineer Intern @
Jan - April 2023
- Receiving compensation from my last two co-ops allowed me to invest in stocks (even though I had an all-time $300 loss the last time I checked) through Wealthsimple, and I grew to love their products. Additionally, I realized my affinity for the fast-paced environment of startups, making Wealthsimple, a Canadian fintech startup, the obvious choice for my next co-op.
- At Wealthsimple, I became part of the Managed Investing team. My primary project was to edit the Discover page to increase traffic to managed investing portfolios using React Native. Later, I refactored my own code to incorporate Contentful, which provides a no-code interface for stakeholders to update content and assets independently in real time, without needing direct developer intervention. This process also required implementing TypeScript data validation types and new actions and reducers into Redux. The project significantly increased user engagement, propelling traffic to exceed 1 million visitors — a milestone that marked significant success in my career.
- Furthermore, I undertook the migration of Ruby on Rails services for Invest app deprecation messaging, ensuring a smooth transition for over 230,000 users. I also contributed to the development of our Design System by creating reusable components and assets for cross-repository use, significantly streamlining the development process.
Software Engineer Intern @
Jan - April 2023
- Receiving compensation from my last two co-ops allowed me to invest in stocks (even though I had an all-time $300 loss the last time I checked) through Wealthsimple, and I grew to love their products. Additionally, I realized my affinity for the fast-paced environment of startups, making Wealthsimple, a Canadian fintech startup, the obvious choice for my next co-op.
- At Wealthsimple, I became part of the Managed Investing team. My primary project was to edit the Discover page to increase traffic to managed investing portfolios using React Native. Later, I refactored my own code to incorporate Contentful, which provides a no-code interface for stakeholders to update content and assets independently in real time, without needing direct developer intervention. This process also required implementing TypeScript data validation types and new actions and reducers into Redux. The project significantly increased user engagement, propelling traffic to exceed 1 million visitors — a milestone that marked significant success in my career.
- Furthermore, I undertook the migration of Ruby on Rails services for Invest app deprecation messaging, ensuring a smooth transition for over 230,000 users. I also contributed to the development of our Design System by creating reusable components and assets for cross-repository use, significantly streamlining the development process.
Software Engineer Intern @
Jan - April 2023
- Receiving compensation from my last two co-ops allowed me to invest in stocks (even though I had an all-time $300 loss the last time I checked) through Wealthsimple, and I grew to love their products. Additionally, I realized my affinity for the fast-paced environment of startups, making Wealthsimple, a Canadian fintech startup, the obvious choice for my next co-op.
- At Wealthsimple, I became part of the Managed Investing team. My primary project was to edit the Discover page to increase traffic to managed investing portfolios using React Native. Later, I refactored my own code to incorporate Contentful, which provides a no-code interface for stakeholders to update content and assets independently in real time, without needing direct developer intervention. This process also required implementing TypeScript data validation types and new actions and reducers into Redux. The project significantly increased user engagement, propelling traffic to exceed 1 million visitors — a milestone that marked significant success in my career.
- Furthermore, I undertook the migration of Ruby on Rails services for Invest app deprecation messaging, ensuring a smooth transition for over 230,000 users. I also contributed to the development of our Design System by creating reusable components and assets for cross-repository use, significantly streamlining the development process.
Things I’ve Built
I. TutorLab
TutorLab is a full-stack educational platform valued at $200k with 700+ active users. It's a MERN app, incorporating Redux for state control, i18next for language versatility and GCP's App Engine for hosting.
MERN
GCP
II. SustainU
SustainU is a multifaceted platform designed to inspire and empower individuals to take meaningful actions to combat climate change and promote sustainability. Competing against 1000+ participants, the web app was conceptualized and developed in 24 hours, winning Technica 2023.
Next.js
Tailwind CSS
Flask
III. Coffee Hours
Coffee Hours is a mobile-responsive web application that facilitates virtual coffee chats between students, faculty members, and alumni from universities across Canada. The application was awarded the best pitch in TechNova 2021 among 300+ participants and was prototyped in 36 hours.
React
Firebase
SCSS
Other Ventures
Engineering Lead at TechNova
I was the Engineering Lead for the third iteration of TechNova, UWaterloo's first women in tech hackathon. TechNova's mission is to create safe, inclusive spaces for women and non-binary individuals to advance in the technology industry. In my role, I managed the design-to-frontend handoff, set up the basic infrastructure to facilitate the engineering team's workflow, and updated the main website domain. I ensured all deadlines were met, effectively delegated tasks among team members, hosted weekly meetings, and collaborated closely with other team leads on logistical aspects.
4x Hackathon Winner
I've won prizes at several hackathons, starting with my first win at TechNova 2021, followed by T9Hacks 2021. My most recent victory was at Technica 2023 — the largest hackathon for underrepresented genders, which had over 1000 participants. Additionally, I secured first place in the Upper Division of the Spring Ideathon, hosted by Tomorrow's Entrepreneurs, for a business idea.
Research Assistant
I assisted a PhD student with her research proposal by exploring AI-driven, real-time speech-to-text systems to enhance Air Traffic Control (ATC) communication. Increasing flights and frequency congestion cause communication errors and safety concerns in ATC. The project aimed to bridge the communication gap by transcribing radio communications into text and then extracting and visualizing crucial information for better understanding. My research involved comparing various speech-to-text software, such as OpenAI's Whisper and Google's Chirp, to identify the most effective option for transcribing ATC communications. Additionally, I explored the development of an algorithm designed to extract important data from these transcriptions.
Tech Conferences
I have also attended multiple tech conferences, including Greylock Techfair 2023, Grace Hopper 2023 — the world's largest gathering of women and non-binary technologists, and Harvard WECode 2024 — the largest student-run event for women in computer science.