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Nicholas P Mikstas
408-460-2192
nmikstas@alumni.scu.edu
Career Profile

An extensive background in electronic troubleshooting and repair that was an occupation in the military and civilian sectors for almost twenty years. Fourteen years as a field service technician working on large UPS systems for Liebert and more than ten of those years as the senior technician in the heart of silicon valley. Was responsible for leading large startup projects involving multiple people and millions of dollars of equipment in a fast paced, time compressed environment. Matured from a technician to an engineer after completing a master’s degree in electrical engineering with a focus in digital signal processing.

Relevant Skills
  • Three Phase Power Systems
  • High Voltage Battery Strings
  • Power Quality Metering
  • Load Banking
  • Digital and Analog Electronics Troubleshooting
  • Surface Mount and Through Hole Hand Soldering
  • UPS Startup and Commissioning
  • Altera Design Software
  • HTML, CSS, Javascript
  • Embedded Systems
  • C, C++, C#, Java
  • MATLAB
  • Xilinx Design Software
  • Verilog, VHDL
Career History
Maintenance Technician III, C&W Services, West Jordan, UT, Jun 2020-Present
  • Shift lead responsible for various maintenance tasks at an Amazon fulfillment center
  • Earned the 3P RME Raising the Bar award for 2021
Self Employed, Mikstas Industries, LLC, May 2019-Jun 2020
  • Perform contract work primarily based on embedded systems
FPGA Design Engineer 3, L3 Communications, Feb 2018-May 2019
  • Implemented FPGA based modem designs in VHDL and simulated those designs in Modelsim
  • Performed lab testing on products under development with signal generators, spectrum analyzers and other RF test equipment
  • Wrote software to automate modem test procedures using C#
Teacher’s Assistant-Electrical Engineering, Santa Clara University, Aug 2015-Dec 2017
  • Taught lab classes for Intro to Logic Design, Advanced Logic Design and Computer Architecture
  • Taught lecture classes for Junior Project Design and Senior Project Design
  • Created design projects for juniors involving PCB design, hand soldering and enclosure design
  • Guided electrical engineering seniors through their year-long senior design projects by providing technical support and progress evaluations
Crit. Facilities Tech., Brookfield (Contracted to Apple), Sunnyvale, CA, Jan 2015-Jun 2016
  • Performed various daily checks to ensure the reliable operation at Apple critical facilities
  • Installed AC electrical power circuits in both lab and office environments
Customer Engineer Level 4, Liebert, San Francisco Bay Area, CA, Feb 2001–Jan 2015
  • Most junior Liebert associate to earn the position of project leader
  • Consistently demonstrated the ability to work with both Liebert associates and customers of all personality types
  • Responsible for coordinating large computer power equipment installations and startups located across the San Francisco Bay Area and other Western States, in many cases exceeding one million dollars in value to both the customer and Liebert
  • In depth knowledge of three phase power equipment including rectifiers, inverters, static transfer switches, flywheels, DC power plants, and power distribution equipment
Active Duty Army, United States Army, Iraq, 2004–2005
  • 642nd Aviation Support Battalion, 2 Army Commendation Medals
Army National Guard, Atascadero, CA, 1999–2007
  • 340th Forward Support Battalion
Education
Certificate in Full Stack Web Development, University of Utah, Feb 2020

Masters in Electrical Engineering, Santa Clara University, Dec 2017
  • Graduated with Distinction, 3.8+ GPA
Certificate in Fundamentals of Electrical Engineering, Santa Clara University, Jun 2015

Professional Certificates, University of California Santa Cruz, Extension
  • VLSI Engineering, Jun 2013
  • Linux Programming, Mar 2012, with Honors
  • Embedded Systems, Dec 2011, with Honors
Bachelors in Computer Science, New York Institute of Technology, Mar 2010
  • Graduated Summa Cum Laude, 3.9+ GPA
Associates in Physical Science, Salt Lake Community College, Aug 1998