AFAM: Hello Jean and thank you for this opportunity to ask you a few questions. You are a Graduate engineering student majoring in mechanical engineering at UC Berkeley. Could you please tell us a few words about the road that led you to Arts et Metiers and most importantly why and when you decided to become an engineer?
Jean:
I've always been fascinated by inventors and people who create new technologies. Quite early on, I realized that engineering was probably the best way to combine science, problem-solving, and innovation. I also knew from high school that I wanted to study in the United States one day.
When I entered Arts et Métiers after my preparatory classes, I noticed that many students were able to spend part of their studies in the US. That became a goal for me. More specifically, I wanted to come to California and experience Silicon Valley, which is probably one of the most exciting places in the world for innovation and technology.
So throughout my studies, I worked toward that objective, and eventually I had the opportunity to join UC Berkeley.
AFAM: Could you tell us a bit more about your studies and life in California?
Jean:
When I arrived at Berkeley, I wanted to take full advantage of the opportunity to explore subjects beyond traditional mechanical engineering. Alongside my core courses, I progressively focused more on Data Science, Machine Learning, AI, and software engineering. These fields complemented my engineering background and completely changed the direction I wanted to take after graduation.
Besides that, I became as a Teacher Assistant in an Oceanography course during Fall 2025, which was actually quite far from my academic background.
I ended up loving it. It really structured my semester, and teaching students every week was extremely rewarding.
The following semester, I decided to continue as a TA, but this time in a completely different subject: Ethics in Engineering. Again, it was a fascinating experience.
Being a Teaching Assistant also helped financially. The salary and tuition benefits covered all of my educational expenses.
Outside of class, I also spent a lot of time working on software and AI projects, which allowed me to gain practical experience and ultimately transition from mechanical engineering toward AI engineering.
That gave me the opportunity to fully enjoy California. I traveled a lot, discovered many places across the state, joined a local golf club and managed to play almost every week, which was a pretty nice bonus!
AFAM: What was the most challenging for you in the US?
Jean:
The biggest challenge was finding a way to continue the experience in the US after graduation.
Before arriving, our focus was on getting admitted to a great university. But once you're here, you realize that employers care much more about your professional experience than about the name of your school.
The competition is extremely strong, especially in today's job market. Over the past three years, hiring has become much more difficult, particularly for international students who also require visa sponsorship.
Breaking into AI without a traditional software engineering background was another challenge. It required a lot of personal work outside of my coursework to build the necessary skills and demonstrate them through projects.
Beyond that, obtaining a work visa within the required timelines has also been a challenge that I didn't fully anticipate before coming here.
AFAM: Can you share a little bit about your future plans?
Jean:
I'm very happy to say that I am now AI Engineer at Augura Health, a biotechnology startup based in San Francisco, California.
The company is developing an agentic AI platform that helps automate and accelerate clinical research by analyzing scientific literature and generating structured evidence for clinical studies.
This position is exactly the kind of opportunity I was hoping to find when I decided to come to Berkeley.
I would also like to express my gratitude to my Shasta mentor, Alain Mutschler, whose guidance, encouragement, and continuous support were invaluable throughout this adventure.
AFAM: What is one favorite way to spend your free time (hobbies, weekend activities)?
Jean:
In my free time, I mainly enjoyed playing golf. Berkeley also has a large French community. We traveled a lot together throughout the year, including trips to Vegas, LA, Tahoe, Yosemite, Death Valley, and many other amazing places.
One of the highlights of the year was spending Spring Break in Hawaii.
AFAM: Thank you, Jean!
Please read other interviews in our "Zoom on" series
All pictures: courtesy of Jean
Jean with NYU students at Cal Harks event in San Francisco
Jean avec Marie Imad (A&M/Stanford student)
Jean playing golf in San Francisco
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