Five years ago Jacob Fakult began independently studying computer networking without any prior knowledge. Today he is a network engineer. "Every day I am proud of how far I have come," Jacob says. "For me, this is only the beginning." Jacob was attracted to the MS-CTD program because of the program's "unique focus on interdisciplinary research and its collaborative environment with other programs." Through the program, he hopes to become a well-rounded researcher and to better understand the disciplines required to close the digital divide. "As a researcher, I hope to study how technology policies and regulations have empowered some countries to create entire digital economies, while many others have yet to bring 80 percent of their population online," he says. After completing his graduate studies, Jacob plans to become a network architect and eventually help design telecommunications policy and technical network infrastructure. But his "longest" long-term goal is to live to 104 so he can experience three different centuries. "Between modern medicine, technology and a healthy lifestyle, it may not be as crazy as it seems," he says.