Audra Heistand, will graduate from the School of Information Technology this weekend with honors and a 4.0 GPA. During her time at Illinois State University, Heistand is best known for her leadership, having served as president of the Association of Information Technology Professionals. She was also founder and president of Technology Assistance Community Outreach Service (TACOS). With her experience in leadership, it’s no surprise that Heistand easily received a job offer.
Heistand hit the ground running when she arrived on campus and tried to get an internship right after her freshman year. She reached out to a professor and networked on campus by participating in school activities, which helped her land an internship. She also regularly earned Dean’s List recognition and received the Outstanding Senior Award from the School of IT in April 2022.
TACOS, which Heistand founded with a friend, is a Registered Student Organization where IT students coordinate visits to local partners to help community members solve technology issues. The organization also provides learning resources for members to increase their troubleshooting knowledge/strategies with hands-on experiences.
“I created the TACOS group, and we never expected it to be a big thing,” Heistand said. “But we ended up volunteering and were eventually nominated for the Registered Student Organization Civic Engagement Award. That was so amazing.”
Heistand had some advice for other students.
“I’ve definitely dedicated a lot of specific time to homework, but I’ve also built my network and really asked professors for help,” she said. “Ask for help, go to office hours, and build those connections with professors because that will really help you, far beyond your grades.”
She also recommended club activities as a way to make good connections with people in your major who will understand what you are going through.
“Try one club, and see if you like it,” Heistand said. “You’ll learn if you can handle one organization, then you can think about adding another. You never know what being involved will lead to if you don’t try.”
Following graduation, Heistand will be a software engineer at State Farm. Her future goal is to be an IT project manager when she earns enough time and experience in her field.
For more information about how Illinois State is celebrating commencement this semester, visit the Graduation Services website.
