The same boy that had nightmares about Michael Jackon’s “Thriller” music video has gone on to be a successful, involved member of our community, with a resume so jam-packed that one does not know where to begin. A fifth year Information Technology major, Diego Gile is currently working at Pershing LLC: A BNY Mellon Company, and has been since the spring of 2007. As a business analyst, he maintains databases and customer data, and, well, there are a lot of spreadsheets and graphs involved. He reports directly to the Vice President and works closely with the Chief Administrative Officer. Besides working 25 hours per week, he also attends college full-time.
At school, his inspiration is Marc Sequeira, a “cool professor.” He has accomplished so much, says Diego, and he’s young and clearly very knowledgeable about game development. Although unsure what exactly he himself wants to pursue with his IT degree, Diego has always been drawn to cybersecurity and crime prevention. Last year, he competed in a state cybersecurity contest, Cyber Aces, and placed 45th out of 650. The excitement and thrill of the competition is driving him to participate again, and he hopes to finish first this year. If not crime prevention, his heart draws him to design and 3D modeling, “because I’m a geek.” In pursuit of design experience, he sometimes volunteers his time to development teams that make indie games.
As if a life of work and school wasn’t busy enough, Diego continues to serve as president of Psi Upsilon, a national fraternity that values friendship. He has been a leader since January 2012, and has overcome obstacles ranging from the aftermath of an electrical house fire in 2006 to delegating tasks and recruitment. One of the constant challenges, he says, is accomplishing a fraternity’s duties with a limited number of brothers. To combat this, he works to delegate each job according to his brothers’ strengths and weaknesses. Today, Psi Upsilon is working on building a brand, and they aim to share their passions, be it longboarding, videogames, or food, to the community.
Diego also serves as Treasurer on the Omicron Delta Kappa executive board, and is the community service chair for IFSC. On Wednesdays night, you may catch his show on the WJTB, NJIT’s radio station, as he both DJs and produces on the side. His Argentinian background has had a lot of influence on his values, and at home, he speaks only Spanish with parents, whom he has been helping integrate into their lives here. He draws strength from his grandmother, who had 12 children in a third world country and strove to provide for them as best as she could. In his personal life, he says relationships are not currently a priority, because his immediate future holds uncertainty, “but I am eligible, and y’know, dating.”
You may not expect it, but Diego is also a diehard Evanescence fan, one who goes to shows and admires the “amazing” Amy Lee. His hobbies and his experience set him apart from the average college student. He advises incoming freshmen trying to make their way in the collegiate environment to worry about their course load early on, and get the hard core classes out of the way. Get involved, because it really teaches you how to deal with people, a skill that is necessary for success. And, quoting Earl Nightingale, he advises, “Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway.”
