Engr. Tristan Janryll A. Mata earned his BS in Agricultural Engineering from MMSU in 2015 and passed the Professional Agricultural Engineering Licensure Examination in September of the same year. After taking his oath, he became part of MMSU's LiDAR Project for 3 months, after which, he took a hiatus until June 2016, when he was offered to be a full-time researcher on a project entitled "Enhancing Peanut Production through Innovative Water Management Strategies", a 2-year project funded by DOST-PCAARRD led by Dr. Virgilio Julius P. Manzano Jr.

After a one-year stint on the Peanut project, Engr. Mata went on to explore opportunities that could improve his skills and discover his real passion. Later on, they offered him a job as a Quality Controller for Agricomp Machineries and Construction Corp. in Cauayan City, Isabela, where he tested and calibrated several types of Mechanical Dryers and assessed the accuracy of design, fabrication of machinery, and dryer parts.

Engr. Mata was also involved at the Provincial Government of Isabela under the Agricultural Engineering Division as an Engineer I. Most of his duties were focused on processing permits and clearances, supervising the construction, and monitoring the installation of the proposed 4-unit Isabela Grain Drying Centers strategically built across the province of Isabela.

He was involved in multiple research projects at Isabela State University under the following projects: Smarter Approaches to Reinvigorate Agriculture as an Industry in the Philippines (SARAI) – a DOST-PCAARRD-funded project; Water Security in Cagayan River Basin: Assessment of the Impact of Present and Future Climate on Water Resources and Demands for Agriculture, Domestic Use, and Industry using the Water Evaluation and Planning (WEAP) Model – a NEDA-funded project; Integrated Flood and Water Resources Management in ASEAN Basins for Sustainable Development (IFWaRM); and Smart Water Infrastructure Management (SWIM) Research Center – both DOST-PCIEERD-funded projects.

Subsequently, he returned to MMSU in April 2023 as a Project Technical Aide VI. He became part of the Coastal Engineering and Management Research and Development Center (COASTER) Project 2: Assessment, monitoring, and prediction of coastal flooding of selected municipalities in the Ilocos Region. Thereafter, he was hired permanently as a Science Research Assistant.

Engr. Mata specializes in Land and Water Resources Engineering and Farm Machinery. He also conducts flood simulations and sediment transport modeling using HEC-RAS and BlueKenue™/TELEMAC, respectively.