Tanu Gupta knew what she wanted when she came to the United States from India to study cybersecurity. What she didn't know was how important the people around her would become.

Her first stop wasn't CSUSB. At her previous university, classes ran late into the night and the community felt distant. Nobody talked to each other. It felt like online school in person.

"In the first week itself, I changed my mind," she said. "I have to move."

She transferred to Cal State San Bernardino. The difference was immediate.

"The first thing that really struck me was the classes," Gupta said. "The professor was really there to help you, to talk to other people in the class and to create community around us."

Vincent Nestler and Kenneth Desforges, faculty members in the School of Cyber and Decision Sciences, became mentors who didn't just teach — they listened. One spent time reviewing her resume and LinkedIn profile. Another challenged her to think like an engineer, not a student. Both gave her the same career advice at a turning point when she needed it most.

But the moment that stuck with her most came from a classmate.

When her friend Omar got his first job offer, he didn't just celebrate. He turned around and helped everyone else in the class — sharing exactly how he landed it, how he talked about his projects in interviews and what worked.

"That's the kind of place CSUSB is," Gupta said. "People really care about each other's success, not just their own."

Gupta graduated in May 2026 with a master of science degree in information systems and technology with a concentration in cybersecurity. She has already accepted a full-time position with a firm in Pasadena.

She came to CSUSB not knowing anyone. She left with mentors, friends from across the globe   and a career she built with their support.

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Cal State San Bernardino is a federally designated Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) offering graduate programs in cybersecurity and information systems and technology — where international students find the mentorship, community and career support to compete in the Southern California tech market.