Two graduates of Stanford University and Diablo Valley College detail how industry-grade technology experience as part of their studies alongside industry exposure made an incredible impact on their lives and careers.
New, innovative opportunities such as Autodesk’s Campus Experts program nurtures students and bring new insights to the company itself.
Students gain not only technical expertise, but also transformative soft skills and business learnings to further their careers.
Today, internships are more than the old stereotype. You can still see it on TV and in the movies—the young students or graduates vying for their big chance while balancing carriers of coffee or delivering complex sandwich orders. But there’s so much more to it in the real world. Gaining career experience is a tangible and strategic opportunity for both industry and students, whether it’s vocational schools or higher education.
Vocational schools are now directly joining forces with design and manufacturing companies for new work-study programs that help grow students’ skills on the job before graduation. One great example of that success is Orleans Technical Center in New York where one high school program partners with local industry for students to learn on-the-job, helping to fill the manufacturing skills gap.
For college students, summer internships remain one of the best ways to jumpstart their career and learn more outside the classroom. At the same time, organizations can help build a potential pool of future talent. Companies are also innovating new ways to nurture students—and reap insightful benefits for their own business.
Over the years, Autodesk has invested in several programs focused on transitioning students from campuses into careers. Autodesk's Campus Experts is one of these programs that helps students not only gain valuable growth using Autodesk Fusion, but also the business skills to succeed in the workplace. Gabriel Iluma and Jacob Ramirez share their experiences on how industry and education collaboration made an incredible difference in their own careers.
While attending Stanford University where he double majored in computer science and product design, Iluma first learned about Campus Experts through a casual conversation with another student already in the program. Intrigued, Iluma applied and was surprised to discover the hiring process focused less on technical expertise and more on passion and character.
“The first thing they said to me was, ‘You don't have to know Fusion. You just need to be passionate about design,’” Iluma says. “I was so passionate about design—I just wanted to make things.”
This open-minded approach gave him the confidence to dive into the role, even though he wasn’t actually an expert in Autodesk Fusion at the time. From the start, Gabe treated the role as an opportunity to grow both personally and professionally, working closely with both the Autodesk Education and Fusion teams for the next two years.
Iluma held office hours on campus, offering one-to-one guidance for students working on projects using Fusion. He conducted workshops for student clubs and organizations, ensuring they felt supported in learning the software. He also organized large-scale events, including design competitions, a fireside chat with Autodesk CEO Andrew Anagnost and Autodesk CMO Dara Treseder, and product management panels.
—Gabriel Iluma, Associate Product Manager, Autodesk
Ramirez first discovered his passion to design and make things during high school when he worked with CLP Motorsports. Building and racing cars across the country became more than a job—it was a foundation for his technical expertise and learning CAD design and prototyping. After graduation, he continued his studies at Diablo Valley College (DVC), with a new focus on learning Fusion and industrial design.
At DVC, Jacob participated in a design competition hosted by Autodesk where his talent, technical skills, and collaborative spirit caught the eye of an Autodesk team member. This led to his involvement in Campus Experts. Over the course of a couple of years, Ramirez conducted many workshops after his regular classes. Ramirez also offered office hours to fellow students working on both personal and class projects.
With his experience, he focused on more advanced Fusion techniques and project support, ensuring both peer collaboration and professional training. It became a turning point in Ramirez's journey as he collaborated with the Autodesk product team, business development, marketing, and more.
—Jacob Ramirez, Production Systems Specialist, Archer Aviation
Gaining technical prowess with Fusion was one thing. But both Ramirez and Iluma discovered even more skills and experience they didn’t expect. For Ramirez, he uncovered his “soft skills” side. With every workshop, he was able to learn more about presenting and hone his skills with both positive and constructive criticism from his Autodesk mentor. And, with every meeting, he could better communicate as part of the team.
“It was a fast track to advancing my soft skills development that 100 percent still helps me to this day,” Ramirez says. “The biggest thing I took out of the program is the ability to present to a group and confidently talk to everyone, even going up to our directors. It’s no problem now.”
Iluma also found those social skills important not only in the professional world, but also in personal passion projects including OUI., a documentary by Iluma about Cameroonian refugees living in Nigeria which was distributed by Journeyman Pictures. He also won an Independent Short Award for Best Music Video for his short film ZOMBIE!, inspired by Nigeran activist and musician Fela Kuti.
“These social skills I learned from the Campus Expert program help me out a ridiculous amount of the time—between the documentary filmmaking and just talking to Fusion customers all the time as an APM,” Iluma says. “It’s really important that students get those kinds of skills.”
With these new skills and technical expertise in hand, both Iluma and Ramirez are now flourishing in their careers. After completing his studies at DVC, Ramirez went on to work for an AI-powered autonomous driving startup as a prototype and fabrication engineer using Fusion. He’s now a production systems specialist on the electric engine team at Archer Aviation, focusing on process flow development.
After Iluma’s graduation from Stanford last summer, he accepted an offer from Autodesk. As an associate product manager on the Product Design and Manufacturing Solutions platform team, he is solving consumer product design problems daily with an emphasis on designing for manufacturability and keeping a customer-first mindset.
For both, Iluma and Ramirez the Autodesk skillset paired with industry exposure were both a turning point and launch pad.
“Not only did I gain more technical skills and the confidence for presentations, but also a professional presence to build connections,” Ramirez says. “With the experience and references from Autodesk, it opened so many doors to my first job and then on to where I am today at Archer Aviation.”
“I had a choice between Google and Autodesk, and I felt like I could grow more at Autodesk,” Iluma adds. “It seemed like it would be a good pathway for the rest of my career—and I was just very comfortable. I knew many employees since I worked with them for so long as a Campus Expert and an additional internship. There’s so much trust. I’m the youngest member on the team, but it’s seen as an advantage and not a disadvantage because I can provide a fresh perspective. It just kind of feels like home.”
There’s no doubt that industry exposure while in school makes a great difference when transitioning into that first job. Another great way to gain this experience is through the Autodesk Design & Make Ambassador program that opens in cycles for applications in the US throughout the year.
