Student Perspective: Nicholas LaJoie
In fall of 2017, Nicholas Lajoie will be entering his senior year in the computer engineering program, with a minor in mathematics. He spent his summer as an intern with Kepware, a software development company in Portland, Maine. With his graduation approaching, Nicholas has been considering what will come next for him and reflecting upon his experience at UMaine.
When considering which school to attend, Nicholas didn’t have to look farther than his family for inspiration. His older sister, a 2013 alumna of UMaine, spoke highly of her great experiences, as well as her love and pride for the school. While UMaine was only three hours from home, the distance gave him the opportunity to gain independence. In addition to the family connection and proximity to home, the university had a strong engineering program, which sealed the deal for him.
During his time at UMaine, Nicholas seized many opportunities offered and got involved. He helped found the UMaine Entrepreneurship Club in 2016 and served as President. The project was inspired after he had an internship with the company Med Rhythms, which was founded by UMaine alumni Brian Harris and Owen McCarthy.
After spending a summer working in the Harvard Innovation Lab in Boston, he realized there was a need for a similar type of organization at UMaine. He also participated in the UMaine Business Challenge, is serving as the Vice President of Communications with his fraternity Sigma Phi Epsilon, and works with the Newman Center. In his free time Nicholas enjoys playing sports, particularly basketballs and intramurals.
To be well balanced, Nicholas is highly organized. He utilizes Google calendar, to-do lists and tracks his activities on paper. He tries not to stress too much about accomplishing everything in one day, and takes it as it comes. He relies on his close relationships with UMaine faculty for perspective and his friends, as well as his fraternity brothers, for support. Nicholas acknowledged recognizing one’s limits, and having the ability to say “no” is a key part of keeping stress low and accomplishments high. This approach has allowed him to participate in many great opportunities with great success.
One of the things Nicholas enjoys most about UMaine is the sense of community and describes the campus as having a small town feel. He enjoys the familiarity of the campus, whether it’s getting the opportunity for a quick chat with President Hunter or seeing people he knows around. Nicholas feels like part of a tight-knit community, even if he doesn’t know everyone on campus. He also enjoys spending time out on the mall in front of the Fogler Library, and going for runs on the trails behind the New Balance Recreation Center. However, he isn’t a huge fan of the legendary buff chick wrap, so odds are you won’t catch him standing in line for one anytime soon.
Having grown up on a farm in Aroostook County in Northern Maine, Nicholas feels a close connection to the state, as well as the farmer’s way of life. His goal is to find a way to connect his education and passion for computer technology to help advance agriculture in the state. Utilizing his education and skills learned from his internships, he would like to travel around the state and work with different farms to help solve problems using technology.
If he could offer advice to University of Maine students as well as prospective students, Nicholas would suggest using their first year at school to take advantage of all the opportunities UMaine has to offer. He suggests taking time to figure out what’s interesting, as well as to discover opportunities they might not even know existed. By getting involved, students make friends who are going to be friends for life, so even if they’re shy or unsure, try anyway. Additionally, Nicholas would encourage others to get to know faculty in their department. Go to their office hours, ask questions and get to know them, even if it feels awkward at first. This will help faculty put a name to the face, and they’ll be even more willing to help you through your program, as well as your time at UMaine.
Update: Nicholas just won the Fournier Family Foundation Tech Prize for IoTato, his startup, in the Maine Business Challenge competition on campus on Saturday, March 31.