Kristina Trajkovski ’18 (Subotica, Serbia / Knox City, TX) is the next FizzBuzz profile. FizzBuzz, previously Epischool, is a digital program focused on catalyzing growth by teaching members how to build software applications along with the fundamentals of tech entrepreneurship. FizzBuzz was co-founded by Branko Backovic ’07 (Despotovac, Serbia / Lisle, IL) and his partner Paul Orland in 2021.
Since its launch, FizzBuzz has welcomed many alumni from the FLEX and YES programs to both complete the Coding for Founders program and intern alongside Paul and Branko.
Read more about Branko’s background and journey to co-founding FizzBuzz here.
The following interview with Kristina was also recorded for the FizzBuzz podcast.
Please introduce yourself to the FLEX community.
Hi FLEX community! My name is Kristina Trajkovski, and I am from Serbia. A fun fact about me is that I speak five languages. I am fluent in Serbian, Hungarian, English and Turkish, and I understand a bit of German.
Can you tell us more about your studies and work experience?
I am about to start my studies in computer engineering. Prior to college, I have been involved in many projects related to computer engineering, such as being a member of the robotics team during my FLEX exchange year and EpiSchool. I was also a proud FLEX City Representative!
How was your American Councils / Epischool Summer Session experience?
I joined the Summer Session because I wanted to learn more about the digital economy and careers in tech. Epischool contacted me and shared more about the course and the flexible schedule. After a few weeks of joining, I was amazed by their work and it inspired me to think of my own technology entrepreneurship project. I am grateful to American Councils for this awesome opportunity!
What is the most valuable lesson you have learned this summer?
I learned how to implement a specific block of knowledge in different scenarios. For example, the lessons we learned in week 1 can still be implemented at week 7 in a completely new way.
What technology entrepreneurship project did you start during the summer?
I was inspired by the bad situation of stray and lost animals in Serbia. I would always see posts on Facebook and Instagram such as “I lost my dog. Can someone please help me find it?” and “There is a stray dog walking around in my neighborhood. Can anybody shelter it?”
I thought these posts were not as effective as they could be, so I decided to make an app where you can find lost pets, their owners, or find a shelter for stray animals. I also partnered with another Epischool student in the U.S., and we will expand the project to buying and selling pets.
What was your dream job as a kid?
This changed a lot actually! First, I wanted to be a doctor. Then, I wanted to have a career where I could be social and constantly talk to people in different languages. Finally, I discovered programming and robotics. I love technology, as I can build something and then see the results in front of me. I discovered that this is what I truly like to do.
Do you have any tips on starting to learn about tech and entrepreneurship?
What I would tell our FLEX community is to look for things that can be improved either in personal life or the broader community. What problems do you see? What are you passionate to change around you? I care about animals and that makes me personally a lot more inspired and a lot more motivated to work on my project.
