For ACG Parnell College graduate Derek Lieu, seeing Silicon Valley – the leading technology, innovation and entrepreneurship hub of the world – had always been a goal.

That goal was realised this year when he was accepted into ASES Summit 2017 – a week-long program held at the University of Stanford that showcases speakers, workshops and company tours from Silicon Valley.

“The Summit was non-stop every day. We heard from investors and entrepreneurs who shared their tips and key learnings. We toured leading tech companies such as Google, Facebook and Uber and heard about each other’s local entrepreneurship hubs around the world.”

Now in his second year studying Commerce at The University of Melbourne, Derek hopes to work in the tech sector when he graduates – ideally running his own company. He describes himself as a technological optimist with a strong interest in software, which can modernise the world by making processes easier – saving time, money, and positively impacting people’s lives.

“As someone who’s seen first-hand how technology has grown and improved over my lifetime, I’m a firm believer that it will keep solving problems in the future,” he says.

Alongside his university studies, Derek is running a company called The Cut, which streamlines the hairdressing process through online booking, individual stylist profiles, and customer ratings and reviews.

As for the future, enhancing the social value of tech products is where he’d like to end up. “At the helm of something that I believe is creating significant impact, such as a tech product that’s improved the lives of many others.”

Derek graduated from ACG Parnell College in 2015. He says his highlight from school is the people he met, the friends he made, and the teaching staff who made an impact on where he is now. “My biggest takeaway from my teachers would have to be that with hard-work, anything is achievable.”