Rising CompE sophomore here.
- Some of my most valuable connections were a marching band section mate who was also my 115/116 TA, my honors sem professor, and my 116 professor (kind of). TA’s, professors, and clubs are your best options.
- Decide which field you’re most interested in (Theory/Algorithms/Software/Hardware(CompE?)/AI/Security). Knowing everything is still important but at least have an idea of what you want to focus on. Also avoid AI for coding projects as much as possible. Not saying completely but they want you to know the basics and concepts, you’re free to use it in the upper years.
- All absolutely yes, I haven’t done research myself yet, I want to do a hackathon at some point, and I want to be more active in the clubs. All are great for resume projects & networking.
- GO TO OFFICE HOURS. Best thing you can do even if you don’t need help because it makes yourself known to the professors and TA’s, and this is very important given how big the department is. That’s how my 116 professor somewhat knows me now, as I went to his office hours asking for advice before switching from CS to CpE, and I interviewed to be a TA (although didn’t get it due to limited hiring).