Carter Tierney (B.A. '23)
Carter Tierney (B.A. ’23) is a dedicated Georgia State graduate student pursuing a master’s in computer science after earning his bachelor’s degree in the same area of study in December 2023. He is passionate about technology and excited to make a positive impact in the field.
Interview by Paige White
Why did you choose Georgia State University?
I lived in Kennesaw, Ga., and everyone I knew was going to Kennesaw State University. I wanted to be surrounded by a new environment and different people. My mom went to Georgia State, so it’s nice to keep it in the family. It’s also nice to live downtown, see the city and get out of my small suburb.
What made you want to study computer science?
I always loved math and computers. I was always on the computer growing up. I was interested in computer technology, numbers, algorithms and how the systems worked.
What organizations have you joined at Georgia State University?
I am the head of outreach for the Programming Club @ GSU (ProGSU), and we’re the largest computer science community on campus. We have over 1,000 official members and were founded within the past year. The club was started by Joey Zhang. We hosted Georgia State’s first-ever major league hackathon. We had over 300 students come. I am also the president of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) student chapter at Georgia State. It’s a research organization with nationally associated events. I am currently working with Handshake on a project to help improve AI models. I am also the president of the weightlifting club at GSU and I work part time as a bartender.
What is a major league hackathon?
A hackathon is essentially a competition between coders to build a themed project. Our biggest sponsor for GSU’s recent hackathon, Hacklanta, was Cox. Their theme was “Built for AI” — something that was creative and innovative for the environment or your community, specifically. The team that won built a website where, if you are bored and don’t have anything to do, you can put in your location and your mood and it will give you a quest to go on, with events and activities in your city or around your area.
This was our first large one where judges flew in from California and New York and participants drove hours from Florida and Alabama to participate. It was our first one as a club, and the executive board worked hard to put it together, with 30 to 40 people making it happen. I am the head of outreach, so I was responsible for reaching out to alumni and industry professionals. We also plan on hosting the largest hackathon ever on the East Coast and we plan on growing our community to be equal to or exceed the computer science community at Georgia Tech.
I have also participated in other hackathons. A friend and I got first place in the healthcare track at Emory University’s Emory Hacks 2025 hackathon with our project “VoiceVitals,” a dementia detection capability using machine-learning models on recorded audio clips.
How do you balance your schedule as a full-time college student with extracurriculars and responsibilities?
Google Calendar, for sure, helps me manage my time. I plan everything, from what my day looks like to every meal I’m going to eat, when I can go to the gym, whenever I have club meetings and when I work. Everything is planned out, and it comes down to sticking to that plan.
What motivates you in your career?
My passion is a huge motivator. I am passionate about doing what I love, and that drives me to continue to pursue my career goals. My family and my girlfriend are also my biggest supporters and keep me motivated.
What are your plans for the future?
I want to get a full-time role in big tech. I would like to work at a startup or start my own. As far as big tech companies, I would like to work for Google or Microsoft. They would be great to work at. If I have the opportunity to work at a company operating at a large scale and the work that I do as an engineer is actively affecting people and helping change their lives in a positive way — where I can say the work I have done has reached people, connects with the customer and I see the change for myself — I will be happy.
I have worked full time since I was 15 and have always supported myself financially through school while maintaining my GPA. I am also a teaching assistant at Georgia State, teaching a lab, and I plan to continue those endeavors in the short term.
