About Me
I'm Kerlyn Difo, a data engineer, software enthusiast and current Queens College Senior, passionate about leveraging data to solve complex problems.
With a strong foundation in data science, and software engineering I've honed my expertise through hands-on experiences, including a part-time role as a Data Engineer at Columbia University Irving Medical Center and impactful projects that bridge technical innovation with real-world applications. My professional journey has been shaped by a commitment to precision and scalability.
Major leadership roles like being a LifeSci NYC Technical Campus Ambassador, Journalist for the Queens College Code for All Club, and contributions to hackathon-winning projects are a testament to my dedication to innovation and community engagement!
My goal is to continue driving innovation in data engineering and software while building systems that make data actionable, reliable, and accessible!
Skills
- Backend Development: Python, TypeScript, Node.js, Java, C++
- Data Engineering: PostgreSQL, SQL, MongoDB
- Data Visualization: R, Jupyter Notebook, Tableau
- Containerization: Docker
- Cloud Computing: AWS
Experience
Data Engineer
Columbia University Irving Medical Center
June 2024 - Present
• Launched a novel tool integrating large metadata from PubMed and dbGaP databases, improving data accessibility for research teams.
• Utilized Web-Scraping, Clustering & Association Rule Mining to enhance data retrieval efficiency by 20%, supporting 15 researchers in genomics research.
• Designed and implemented an Extract-Transform-Load pipeline for the tool to organize and visualize metadata with pandas dataframes, using Tkinter, matplotlib & seaborn for user-friendly displays and visualizations.
• Improved data integration and analysis tools, increasing data processing capacity by 30%
• Applied Python, Jupyter, and Anaconda to create asynchronous solutions that optimized pipeline performance.
Data Analyst
Department of Health & Mental Hygiene
June 2022 - August 2022
• Integrated real-time tracking algorithms for vaccine inventory and distribution, increasing resource allocation efficiency by 40%, adopted by over 12 health facilities.
• Enhanced the Covid-19 Vaccination Pediatric Support Program using SQL and Excel to refine vaccine distribution strategies.
• Analyzed substantial medical metadata to boost data accessibility for healthcare professionals by 31%.
Technical Campus Ambassador
LifeSci NYC Internship Program
September 2024 - Present
• Led mock technical and behavioral interviews for students aiming to strengthen their skills in the tech industry, ensuring they are well-prepared for real-world scenarios.
• Reviewed and provided actionable feedback on resumes and application materials, helping students craft compelling profiles that increase their chances of securing internships in life sciences and tech fields.
• Facilitated workshops on technical skills and resume building, delivering guidance on the essential skills and best practices students need to showcase in order to align with industry expectations.
Projects
MultiOmic Phenotypic Data Search
• Created a relational tool that uses the E-Utilities API that queries PubMed to find relationships between studies & metadata from its corresponding dbGaP publications using an Extract-Transform-Load pipeline.
• All data was then organized using Pandas. Automated data management with a query-driven model for quick extraction and visualization using Matplotlib & Seaborn.
RefuConnect
• Developed a multilingual communication platform using ReactJS, ExpressJS, MongoDB, and WebSockets, enabling refugees and aid workers to communicate seamlessly across language barriers with real-time translation via the Google Translate API.
• Implemented a real-time chat feature with WebSockets, allowing users to send messages that are automatically translated into the recipients preferred language on an easy-to-use React front-end.