Twins distinguish themselves at Stanford – one rides waves, one rides trails
Jordan and Liam Llorin, who grew up near Baltimore, will graduate in June with bachelor’s degrees: Jordan with a bachelor’s in product design from the School of Engineering, and Liam with an individually designed major in engineering, titled Computer and Product Design.
As Jordan and Liam Llorin settled into student life at Stanford, they discovered a shared interest in the field of product design, and an affinity for spikeball, which they play – as teammates and as competitors – with mutual friends on Wilbur Field.
The Llorins also pursued individual sports that widened their social circles on campus. For Jordan, it was mountain biking with classmates in the Santa Cruz Mountains. For Liam, it was surfing with friends in Santa Cruz.
At Stanford, their weekly routine includes meeting their sister for dinner. Hannah Llorin, BS ’19, will graduate in June with a master’s degree in human genetics and genetics counseling from Stanford School of Medicine.
Currently, Jordan and Liam are collaborating – along with two other undergraduate students – on a senior capstone project focused on product design, “Redesigning IBM’s Candidate Journey.” The team is identifying ways that IBM’s talent acquisition services team can improve the experience of candidates, focused specifically on recent college graduates and people who are in the early stages of their careers.
The Llorins are also helping redesign Stanford Carta, a student-run platform that helps students make data-driven decisions to craft their educational journeys.
As lead designer at Carta, Liam is managing and maintaining the design system – the library of design components, including buttons, typography, color and other user interface elements – and interfacing with the engineering team.
When Liam contemplates the future, he envisions a career in digital product design and human-centered design.
“I hope to eventually lead a passionate design team at a company whose mission I truly believe in, a company that provides practical value to its consumers, and, just as importantly, a company that appreciates and values good design as a business imperative,” he said.
As a member of the Carta redesign team, Jordan is responsible for interviewing students to validate his design decisions. He has contributed to several projects, including redesigning the course catalog, home page and professor profiles.
Looking ahead, Jordan said he is interested in pursuing a career in user research and human-centered design.
“I am deeply aware of the toll digital media has taken on our daily lives, especially when it comes to our mental health,” he said. “It is a goal of mine to reimagine the attention economy by prioritizing the needs of users as human beings – not commodities.”
As classmates make their way in the world, Jordan encourages them to continue growing academically, socially and culturally.
“Be adventurous and face your fears,” he said. “The only thing between you and your personal growth is a willingness to enter the unknown.”
Liam suggests leaning into gratitude and making the practice a daily habit.
“It’s easy to look at our peers once we graduate and compare ourselves to them, but usually this will just lead to dissatisfaction and envy,” Liam said. “Just listen to the lyrics in J. Cole’s song ‘Love Yourz,’ whose refrain is: ‘No such thing as a life that’s better than yours.’ ”