Technology with purpose

By Sean Wang, ’15 (Biological Sciences)

When I first entered college, I had virtually no concept of “social entrepreneurship,” let alone its role as a pathway of public service. My interest in the topic arose from a fortuitous introduction to the “social-e” sphere through the Compass Fellows program and Social-E Capital, an early-stage social venture competition. Soon I began exploring how the technical aspects of science and engineering can be effectively leveraged for service.

Over time, several classmates and I have coordinated Stanford4Good, a conference on social entrepreneurship that convenes science and engineering undergraduates with young Stanford alumni working in social impact. We also partnered with the Career Development Center to recruit more tech-oriented organizations to the Social Impact Career Fair. Multiple attendees at these two events have expressed their excitement around “technology with purpose” – a notion I hope will become the norm as more students gain STEM backgrounds. Now, after co-leading a Thanksgiving Back service-trip on the topic in the Bay Area, I am confident that the popularity of social entrepreneurship on campus will continue to grow. I hope we may disrupt the traditional career mind-set of many STEM majors and encourage them to consider working in the social sector – an area in which their perspectives and skill sets potentially have much to contribute. I look forward to witnessing the social innovations that students at Stanford will dream up!