Google Engineer Trades Six Figures for PhD in Teaching

When you land a six-figure job at Google, most people tell you to stay forever. Joslyn Orgill chose a different path.

The 30-year-old data engineer resigned from her position at Google's Austin office in August 2024, trading job security and a comfortable income for a computer science PhD program at the University of Illinois. Her mission: expand access to tech education for students who don't see themselves reflected in the industry.

Orgill's decision didn't come easily. She and her husband owned a home in Austin, and her role at Google represented the career breakthrough she'd worked toward since graduating from Brigham Young University in 2021. But something was missing.

Her work felt invisible, contributions going unseen in the massive tech company. When Google announced 12,000 layoffs just six months into her tenure in January 2023, Orgill watched friends struggle to find new positions during the hiring slowdown. The "dream job" suddenly felt fragile.

What pulled her forward wasn't just dissatisfaction with corporate life. It was a passion she'd discovered earlier at BYU, where she taught introductory programming and analytics as an adjunct professor. Those classroom moments stuck with her.

Initially, Orgill planned to stay in industry for years before returning to teaching later in life. But one question kept surfacing: What if she never took the leap? The thought of asking herself "what if" decades down the road felt worse than the uncertainty of starting over.

Why This Inspires

Orgill's story challenges the assumption that prestigious jobs and high salaries equal fulfillment. She's betting her career on something harder to measure: the impact of helping students from underrepresented backgrounds feel confident they can "do something with technology."

Her decision also reflects a broader truth about meaningful work. Sometimes the roles that look perfect on paper drain us, while the paths that seem risky light us up. Orgill chose purpose over prestige, and in doing so, she's creating space for herself to make the difference she couldn't find in corporate tech.

Her students at the University of Illinois will benefit from a professor who knows both sides: the industry's possibilities and its barriers. That perspective matters when you're teaching students who wonder if tech has room for them.

Orgill's journey from Google's offices to university classrooms proves that it's never too late to choose the work that calls you, even when everyone else thinks you're crazy for walking away.