August 13, 2018 | UHCL Staff
In the fall of 1996, Kanchana Weerasinghe did what legions of American students do: They go away to college. But instead of just packing his car and driving a few hours to a new school, he traveled almost 10,000 miles from Sri Lanka to enroll at University of Houston-Clear Lake to pursue a bachelor’s degree in computer science.
“I had finished my associate’s degree in a community college in Sri Lanka and transferred to UH-Clear Lake to complete my undergraduate degree,” Weerasinghe said. “I found immediately that UHCL was very welcoming and friendly with international students.”
Weerasinghe quickly found a job as a student worker and became involved in multiple
student organizations. He didn’t stay alone for long.
“I traveled here with a friend from my community college in Sri Lanka, and it was here that my relationship with her blossomed into love and then into marriage,” he said. “My wife Keshani Pathirage completed her undergraduate degree in computer information systems and started her master’s degree at UHCL.”
Pathirage said that as an international student, she felt supported by her professors, advisers and others at the university. “I felt very well prepared for my career in the technology field,” she said.
“However, teaching was my calling and I became a math teacher in Santa Fe a few years after graduation. The math courses I took as an undergraduate helped me immensely in achieving my goals.”
“You can’t go wrong at UHCL. The faculty and staff are invested in your success and will support you inside and outside the classroom,” she added.
Weerasinghe frequently described UHCL as a place with a “family feel” to it. Soon, as a result of his recruitment efforts, the word “family” became more than just a description.
He said that his older sister was back in Sri Lanka completing her bachelor’s degree in mathematics. “I recruited my sister Sadhana here and she received her master’s in statistics, and today she’s a lecturer of mathematics and statistics here,” he said. “And soon after that, her fiancé, who became my brother-in-law, enrolled and then graduated from here as well.”
Sadhana Weerasinghe said that when she came to the United States, she was frightened and anxious. “The staff were so helpful and friendly, it was easy for me to settle down and adjust,” she said. “I have been teaching in UHCL’s College of Science and Engineering since I graduated in 2000. I follow the same methods as my own instructors did, and I always get good evaluations from my students.”
Sadhana’s husband, Associate Director at Bellicum Pharmaceuticals Amara Jayewardene, said that his courses in statistics made him confident to take up challenges in his career in biostatistics. “I believe this is one of the best universities in the U.S. that identifies international students’ educational needs,” he said.
Apart from the inviting and comfortable university culture, Weerasinghe said that he felt very well prepared academically for a successful future in the workforce. “I knew that if I studied well and contributed, I would be rewarded with scholarships and a graduate assistantship, and that’s exactly what happened,” he said. “I graduated, and my first plan was to jump into the workforce. But because I had a good G.P.A. and was involved in so many student activities, I got multiple offers for scholarships to continue my graduate studies. I had a job offer, but I decided to stay and get my master’s.”
He said that his scholarships and his graduate assistantship with Professor of Computer Science Kwok Bun-Yue helped pay the bills and keep his education very affordable. “What I learned in my classes was in line with technology in the work environment,” he said. “In the field of computer science, the technology is always evolving, and it’s important to stay up to speed. It was a very easy transition for me to join the workforce when I finished my master’s. I did not have much of a learning curve because I already had what I needed.”
Weerasinghe said he had a job lined up three months before he received his master’s degree in 2000. “I began working at a small startup company, and then decided to make a change,” he said. “There was only about a week when I was between jobs. I became a software engineer at Artisan Network Services in Houston, and 17 years later, I’m still here.”
He was promoted to manager of information technology, where he oversees the company’s day-to-day operations with logistics, technology and payment gateways. “My qualifications from UHCL made me a sought-after candidate for employment,” he said. “Even though 20 years have passed since I graduated, I’m still a regular face around campus, and I want to keep giving back to UHCL.”
To learn more about computer science degree programs at UHCL, visit www.uhcl.edu/science-engineering/departments/computing-sciences. For information about UHCL’s international admissions, visit www.uhcl.edu/admissions/apply/international.
