Rifat Al Mahfuz

Builder. Engineer. Problem Solver.

TL;DR

UIUC CS Grad, Software engineer with a track record of owning critical infrastructure, building complex APIs, and shipping products in fast paced environments. I love building systems and solving problems. Looking for my next software engineering role.

About Me

I'm a software engineer with approximately 1 to 1.5 years of professional experience. I am set to graduate with a Master's degree in Computer Science from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in June 2025.

I enjoy coding and building things in general. I'm a strong advocate for writing clean, readable, and maintainable code.

At ShareTrip, I built and maintained backend systems for a travel booking platform with over one million users. I developed services that connect with travel providers, improved system response times, and reduced booking failures. I implemented solutions to handle high traffic periods and worked with teams in two-week development cycles to plan features and fix issues. My work ensured customers could reliably book their travel through the platform.

Although I have less than two years of professional experience, I have been coding as a hobby for much longer. I consider myself proficient in Python, JavaScript, TypeScript (Node) and fairly comfortable with Java and C++. During both my undergraduate and graduate studies, I was actively involved in multiple projects. I've shipped class projects in PHP, C# and GoLang, though I haven't used them professionally.

Skills

I can build with my eyes closed:

Python JavaScript TypeScript Express SQL Sequelize Docker

Have built projects, but might need some googling:

React Go Java C++/C PHP

Can learn in a week:

Everything Else

How I Work

I take ownership

When I work on something, I think about it like it's mine. If there's a problem, I fix it instead of waiting for someone else to notice.

I adapt to the stack

I don't get attached to specific technologies. If the job needs Go instead of Node.js, I learn Go. Tools are just tools.

I ship things

I'd rather build something imperfect and iterate than spend weeks planning the perfect solution that never gets built.

I think about the user

Code is only useful if it solves real problems. I try to understand what users actually need, not just what the spec says.

What I'm Looking For

I do well in places where I can move quickly and see the impact of my work. Whether that's building new features, fixing performance issues, or figuring out why something broke at 3 AM. I'm up for it.

I'm open to opportunities anywhere in the US both remote and on-site.

Background

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Master of Computer Science • Jan 2024 - May 2025

ShareTrip

Software Engineer • Nov 2022 - Dec 2023

Let's Talk

📧 mahfuzrifat10 AT gmail DOT com

📍 United States

"Software's like a drill. Nobody really wants the drill, they want the hole."