A Scholarship and a Summer at Cadence

The Cadence Future Innovators Scholarship was established to support students working to shape the future of technology and to help remove barriers along the way. Each recipient comes from a unique background, and Wade Winter is one of those students. His story is not about a single achievement or a perfect résumé. Rather, it reflects sustained effort through thoughtful choices, as well as the support that turned potential into opportunity.

Wade grew up in Vermont, where he still finds calm in long walks, hikes, and ski days. When he talks about who he is, he doesn't start with his hometown or his major. He starts with the people around him.

"Hi! I'm Wade, and my friends and the people in my communities help to make me who I am."

Wade is studying electrical and computer engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), where he also majors in professional writing to extend the reach of his work. He's spent years learning to use his voice, first as a student representative on his local school board and now on WPI's Committee on Academic Operations. Those experiences shaped a belief he carries into every room he walks into now.

"I've learned that speaking up can make a difference, and that my opinions matter, even if I'm the youngest person in the room."

This summer, Wade is interning at Cadence on the Customer Success Team (CST), where he is getting a firsthand look at what it means to design analog integrated circuits alongside experienced engineers. For Wade, landing within CST is not just an internship; it's the natural next step on a path supported by mentors who believed in him from the start.

Two of those mentors are his professor, Suat Ay, who taught WPI's year-long Analog Microelectronics track, and his teaching assistant, Ibrahim Bozyel. Professor Ay did more than teach the fundamentals. He taught his students how to think and design like professional engineers. Those lessons were not easy, but they gave Wade something he could carry into interviews and use every day at Cadence.

It was during this season of growth that Wade first came across the Cadence Future Innovators Scholarship. He was in Ecuador working on a qualitative research project when he took some free time to write his application responses. At the same time, he was applying to WPI's BS/MS program, knowing he wanted his master's degree but understanding he would need to borrow the full cost. He hit submit and moved on with his summer, not expecting much to come from it. So, when he received the news that he had been awarded the Cadence Future Innovators Scholarship through Silicon Valley Community Foundation, the moment felt deeply meaningful.

"Learning that I received the scholarship felt like an overwhelming recognition of my life so far, and that I'm on a path worth investing in."

That's the quiet power of a scholarship like this one. As much as it provides financial support, it also validates years of dedication and creates space for students to explore their interests with greater confidence. For Wade, it means having the support to pursue the education he wants while continuing to explore what inspires him.

In his CST intern role, Wade is contributing to industry chip work, migrating an R2R digital-to-analog converter (DAC) from Sky130 to GPDK45 as a subblock on the analog team for a SAR ADC. With CST members coaching, Wade uses Cadence tools for a summer-long analog chip design project. He is designing a DAC as a subblock on the intern team. He loves technical challenges, and he owns his enthusiasm without any hesitation.

"I'm a nerd, I love circuits and IC design."

When Wade talks about what has stayed with him most from his internship, he leads with the people. The Cadence employees who took time to sit with the interns, the facility tours, the lunches, and the sand volleyball games. Through those moments, he is learning that he wants to build his career in a place where people rely on and support each other, and where he can do the same in return.

After his internship, Wade will head back to WPI to begin his senior project and take it through tapeout. He's diving into advanced coursework and hopes to help the next class of WPI analog engineers learn their way around Virtuoso Studio, Cadence's custom IC design and simulation platform. His advice for the next generation of innovators sits at the heart of who he is.

"No one can make a chip alone, and people will be willing to help you if you reach out."

Wade's story is exactly why the Future Innovators Scholarship exists. When we invest in a student's education, we are not only helping them finish a degree. We are telling them that the future they are dreaming about is worth building, and that they do not have to build it alone.

To learn more about the Cadence Giving Foundation, explore available resources on the Cadence Giving Foundation website.