Carlos Trevisan has never been satisfied just knowing that something works.
"I want to understand how it works,鈥� says the USF Information Technology major. 鈥淚鈥檝e been interested in computers since I was a kid, starting when I was 9 years old when I built my own server.鈥�
Back then, he was an avid Minecraft player and he wanted to create a private world for gaming with his friends. So Trevisan figured out how to build a small server from scratch, using online tutorials and YouTube to learn about IP addresses and port configuration. He laughs when he recalls how the family internet would grind to a halt every time he and his friends logged on.
While the home internet slowed, his curiosity deepened. In high school, he dove deeper into computing by taking Harvard鈥檚 free CS50 course online. He co-founded a Hack Club with nearly 50 members, where students coded together and hosted workshops. He also led his school鈥檚 first-ever entry into the Brazilian Informatics Olympiad, a coding competition where his team placed in the top 5 percent of their state.
His curiosity has only grown at USF, along with his resume, which now boasts a Silicon Valley internship.
IT was the right choice
Courses focusing on computer information networks, DevOps and cloud computing have been his favorites thus far. They offered a deeper look into the infrastructure of the internet and the systems that power communication across the globe. They affirmed that the IT major was the right choice.
鈥淭hose classes gave me insight into the protocols and processes that make everything work. Computer Information Networks with Professor (Richard) Rauscher was my favorite class. It really showed me how the internet works, from the key protocols and hardware to its history and the ways the technology has advanced over time. It was demanding, but I learned more in that course than any other and it gave me the foundation I needed for my internships.鈥�
Persistence pays off
Finding an internship can be challenging. Trevisan estimates that he submitted between 200 and 300 applications. He learned lessons with each rejection. He reworked his resume, networked at USF career events, asked faculty for feedback and reached out to recruiters.
鈥淚 lost count (how many applications) after a while,鈥� he admitted. It was discouraging at times, but I knew the right opportunity would come.鈥�
It did.
A recruiter from ServiceNow, a Fortune 500 enterprise software company in Silicon Valley, reached out to him, despite passing on his initial application. Trevisan landed the internship and spent a summer working for the company in its California offices. While confidentiality agreements limit how much interns can share, Trevisan said he worked on observability pipelines across thousands of servers. He also developed AI-driven systems to monitor and improve cloud operations.
鈥淭he scale was massive,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e were tracking millions of data points across thousands of endpoints in real time. It was exactly the kind of challenge I had always hoped to work on.鈥�
His work impressed his team so much that he was invited back for a second internship.
And he recently received a full-time software engineering position -- a full year before graduation. He will be a full-time ServiceNow employee in California starting in July 2026.
鈥淜nowing I already have a job lined up with a company like ServiceNow is incredible,鈥� Trevisan said.
Prepared for the future
He credits USF with giving him the technical expertise and the support network needed to get that offer.
鈥淭he IT program didn鈥檛 just teach me concepts, it showed me how to apply them to real problems,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd when it came time to chase internships, the experiences I had here gave me the confidence to keep pushing forward. USF gave me the chance to apply classroom knowledge to real-world projects. Those experiences shaped my confidence and prepared me to contribute meaningfully in the global technology workforce.鈥�
Every step along the way has built on that original drive to know how things work.
鈥淭echnology is like a global highway of information. I want to be one of the people building and maintaining that system, knowing how it all works and making sure it works better, faster and more securely for everyone who relies on it. And I know the IT program at USF prepared me to do that.鈥�