Huntington Alum Ally Kustera Excels at USC

Ally Kustera was one of the best and brightest in Huntington High School’s Class of 2022. A member of five separate honor societies, she won numerous awards as a filmmaker and helped lead the Blue Devil esports team to the national finals.

The Huntington alum has moved on and enjoyed a spectacular freshman year at the University of Southern California where Ms. Kustera is studying interactive entertainment and simulation sciences.

A longtime member of the Blue Devil varsity fencing team, Kustera was the Suffolk runner-up in sabre as a senior. The Otto Kahn Award recipient made her four years at Huntington High School count. The alum is now doing exactly the same thing at USC.

“My freshman year was absolutely amazing; everything I could’ve asked for and more,” Ms. Kustera said. “The energy at USC is electric, unlike anything I’ve experienced before. Los Angeles is a prime location as there’s always an event to go to or something new to explore. My professors were all current working professionals in the video game development industry and were extremely welcoming. I’m an active member of the VALORANT club where I’ve had the privilege of going to esports industry events for free and gain connections to organizations like 100 Thieves and Team Liquid.”

When the spring semester ended, Ms. Kustera didn’t go into relaxation mode. “This past summer I had the greatest experience interning at DKC in their esports and gaming division where I got to work with FaZe Rug and Gen.G,” she said. “Every day brought something new! Recently, I’ve been hired by a startup championed by the co-founder of Tinder and the previous head of engineering at GOAT. I can’t say much yet, but the project has been a ton of fun so far!”

Ms. Kustera’s classes at USC have gone very well. She has to work very hard and is ready for the challenge to get even steeper.

“For my program specifically, the jump from freshman year to sophomore is quite large,” Ms. Kustera said. “At the beginning of this year, sophomores are placed into smaller student run game studios called AGP (advanced game projects) run by seniors and masters students. It’s a near exact emulation of how a real world studio operates. The professors are hands off and want us to problem solve internally.”

The Huntington alum said she’s learned a variety of lessons during his first year at USC and Ms. Kustera was willing to share them with current Huntington High School students:

• “It’s all about balance; balancing social time with academics can be difficult but it’s important to stay on top of assignments because they can pile up a lot quicker than in high school,” Ms. Kustera said.

• “Everyone is in the same boat; everyone wants to make friends freshman year, so don’t be afraid to approach people,” she said.

• “Pick a field of study you are genuinely interested. If you don’t, the process will be a lot more difficult,” Ms. Kustera advises.

• “Pick GE (general education) requirements that interest you,” she said. “USC offers a surfing class for our physical education GE requirement!”

• Stay in your lane, don’t worry about what everyone else is doing,” Ms. Kustera said. “It’s your four years and it’s up to you to spend them in the best way possible to reach your goals!”

• “Everybody makes mistakes; be patient with yourself if you don’t score as high as you wanted to or didn’t get into the organization you wanted,” she said. “Things will always work out!”

“As the Trojan family says here; ‘Fight on,’” Ms. Kustera said.