Meet a fourth-year student leveling up his academic experience
Rhyder Swen arrived at Case Western Reserve University with plans to study computer science and electrical engineering while pursuing minors in mathematics and computer gaming.
What he didn’t expect was that he would later add several more areas of study: computer engineering, systems and control engineering, Japanese, data science and a dean’s-approved program.
Changing electrical engineering from a second major to a minor, Swen began wondering how many other interests he could pursue. His academic path, however, was not driven by a plan to collect credentials.
“I really like learning,” said Swen, who expects to complete the Bachelor of Science in Computer Science program at Case School of Engineering by spring 2027. “I’ve found a lot of classes I wouldn’t have taken otherwise super interesting.”
That curiosity also shaped his experience within computer science. After taking CSDS 221: “Full Stack Web Development”, Swen continued learning independently, teaching himself a web framework and programming language—an experience that helped him discover a passion for web development.
“Those skills have helped me more than anything else during my internships,” said Swen, who developed industry-standard websites using TypeScript at Viget, an independent digital innovation and web development agency.
Another course, CSDS 390: “Advanced Game Development Project”, challenged Swen’s interpersonal skills. Working with a team of about 10 students to develop a video game gave him experience navigating the challenges of large-group collaboration and project management.
Outside the classroom, Swen explores his interests and connects with the campus community through his involvement in several organizations. In addition to serving as a Case School of Engineering peer advisor, he participates in Tsunagari Japan, CWRU Film Society and Big Games Club (BGC).
“There’s a lot of incredibly unique events and activities that I would not have been able to experience outside of CWRU,” he said. “It’s been awesome to have the opportunity to try things I’ve never done before while meeting wonderful people along the way.”
Following graduation, Swen plans to pursue a software engineering position with Google in Seattle.
In recognition of National Video Games Day (Sept. 12), read on to learn more about Swen, his campus involvement and how gaming has impacted his time at CWRU.
Answers have been edited for clarity and length.
1. What has been one of your most memorable experiences through Big Games Club?
I don't think I'll ever forget the first night of CWRU Humans vs. Zombies. We have a tradition of holding “midnight pizza” at the very start of the game, where humans gather around the wet-dry fountain for 10 minutes and get free pizza and points. Attending that for the first time and having no idea what was going to happen was exhilarating. After all, an original zombie could come out of any bush on my walk home!
Everyone coordinated groups to escort each other home, making sure that nobody would be left alone, which had the added benefit of forcing me to meet new people.
2. How has gaming and studying multiple subjects across different departments influenced your CWRU experience?
Overall, gaming has given me a sense of shared community since a lot of other people have played the same games I have. For example, a few clubs reference games I love like Deltarune in their marketing, which is a nice little nod if you know it and gives something mutual you love with other members of the club. It’s also been helpful when it comes to designing games, both in my game development classes and in BGC. Because I’ve played a lot of different types of games, I have a lot more sources to pull inspiration from or compare with when I’m trying to create rules or design my own games.
Studying multiple subjects makes me feel so much more connected. It’s really interesting to see how different departments run their classes. I’ve found that departments tend to encourage different methods of learning, which is a nice way to break up my day and make it so that I’m not doing the same thing all day.
3. With so many academic interests, what advice would you give students who are considering exploring subjects outside their major?
At CWRU, you’re going to have to explore classes outside your major as part of your degree. I think the best thing you can do in these spots is to try out a subject you haven’t really explored before but sounds interesting. A few of my friends have done this with majors like cognitive science and ended up liking it so much that they’re now majoring in it!
4. You can keep only three of your minors. Which ones survive—and why?
This is such a hard question, it’s like choosing between my children! I’d probably pick electrical engineering, mathematics and Japanese. I like learning about how the hardware I’m programming actually works and just find circuits in general fascinating, so electrical engineering gets to stay. Math has been my favorite subject since high school and it’s very relevant to computer science, so it claims the next spot. Last up is Japanese, which is the surprising pick. I didn’t even consider taking Japanese classes before college because I don’t really watch much anime or anything, but I’m very glad I did because it’s such a fascinating language.
5. If your CWRU experience were a video game, what would its title be?
School life 2: Expanded academics DLC [downloadable content.]
