Kevin Lyman has a shiny new degree in computer and systems engineering. But instead of tossing a cap during Saturday's commencement ceremony at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, N.Y., he was busy relocating a company that he started with fellow students to Mountain View, Calif.

The business, Resumazing, uses artificial intelligence to knock down a hurdle for job seekers: Often the skills for doing a job well aren't the same as the skills needed for landing a job. This tool will a help great engineer or a talented artist tailor her resume for particular jobs she's pursuing.

Mr. Lyman couldn't have launched his career as a serial entrepreneur (yes, he's already been involved with other startups) without the interdisciplinary teamwork cultivated among students and professors at RPI. Six-month jobs with multinational companies like Microsoft, through the school's Co-op program, didn't hurt either