Joe Uong

My career has moved steadily deeper into the stack from front-line student services to the data infrastructure underneath.

Student Records Coordinator — Office of the University Registrar, 2011

I started at the Office of the University Registrar in 2011 as a Student Records Coordinator. The Registrar is where you learn what a student record actually is: not a row in a table, but the legal and operational representation of someone’s academic career. I managed a team of 50, oversaw the processing and maintenance of 600,000+ records, and advised students directly on registration, academic policy, and holds. It’s operational work, and it teaches you quickly where the system breaks and who absorbs the cost when it does.

“Every day you were presented with a new set of opportunities to show your supervisory and analytic skills. Your positive, can-do attitude is noticed by all and very well appreciated, especially by those you supervise.”
— Supervisor / Coordinator of Admissions/Registration, Office of the University Registrar (UF HR Annual Evaluation)

“The first thing I noticed about you as your supervisor is that you care very much for the university. In addition to being a dedicated UF student, alumnus, and fan, you are also very proud to be a part of its professional staff.”
— Supervisor / Coordinator of Admissions/Registration, Office of the University Registrar (UF HR Annual Evaluation)

UF COMPASS Project — University-Wide SIS Migration, 2016

In 2016, I was selected to join COMPASS, a multi-year university-wide project to migrate UF’s entire Student Information System from a legacy mainframe to Oracle PeopleSoft. I converted the full population of student records: majors, programs of study, degrees, courses, and enrollment history. I served as the liaison between functional staff and the UFIT development team, configured the new system to match university policy, and helped redesign the student-facing experience in the new environment. It was the most technically ambitious project the university had undertaken in a generation, and it gave me a view of the institution that’s hard to get any other way where I understood the operational side from the Registrar, and the architectural side from the implementation.

“You were selected as a member of the project team because of your keen analytical skills, quick learning style, penchant for exploring and thinking ‘outside the box’ and your work ethic and positive attitude towards change. Your unique and fresh perspective on administrative processes has pushed our team to look closely at how things have been done and often find a more appropriate solution as we move forward.”
— Supervisor / Student Records Team Lead, UF COMPASS (UF Annual Evaluation)

Business Intelligence Analyst — Office of the University Registrar, 2019

When I returned to the Registrar’s Office from the COMPASS project, I moved into the Business Intelligence Analyst role. Starting in the role in 2019, I could build analytics that made sense of what the system was actually doing. I built dashboards and reports used by department and executive leadership, partnered with UFIT on system enhancements, and ran campus-wide training sessions.

“You have been an integral part of the Registrar family for over 11 years. You have served our office and the university community in many ways over this period, advancing from an entry level role through the ranks to serve as a valued member of our management team. Your ability to absorb and synthesize huge amounts of information has allowed you to support just about every process in the office.”
— Supervisor / Senior Associate University Registrar, Office of the University Registrar (UF HR Quarterly Evaluation)

Data Management Analyst — College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, 2022

In 2022, I moved to the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences as a Data Management Analyst. CLAS is the largest college at UF, and the work shifted from reporting on data to building systems that act on it: Snowflake pipelines, Python automation, AI-powered triage, enrollment algorithms, population tracking infrastructure. The problems I’m solving now are ones I watched get handled manually (or not handled at all) earlier in my career.

“I especially appreciate that he is always willing to answer questions and help bring clarity to complicated processes. Joe’s professionalism, innovation, and collaborative spirit continue to elevate our work in significant ways.”
— Supervisor / Associate Dean, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (UF HR Semi-Annual Evaluation)

Instructor, First Year Florida — 2015–2025

I also taught First Year Florida, UF’s signature course for incoming students from 2015 to 2025. It kept me close to what the work is actually for.

“He was very enthusiastic about the course and told us real-life examples to everything. He was open to our opinions and wanted to make sure our first semester was the best.”
— First Year Florida Student (GatorEvals Course Evaluation)

“Joe is so kind and made me feel welcome from the first day in class. He made me feel as though I was wanted in class. The environment he fostered enabled me to meet many friends I hope to continue to know throughout college and beyond.”
— First Year Florida Student (GatorEvals Course Evaluation)

“Professor Joe showed through our content and repetitive student interaction that he cared about the course and each and every one of his students. The course itself maintained a layout that helped students feel familiar with the resources on campus that we will use throughout our time at the university.”
— First Year Florida Student (GatorEvals Course Evaluation)

Education

Master of International Business — University of Florida, Hough Graduate School of Business

Master of Science, Management — University of Florida, Hough Graduate School of Business

Bachelor of Arts, Anthropology — University of Florida, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences