Name: Benard Onyango

Internship, Co-op or Research Site: Pennsylvania General Energy | Title of Your Position: Software Developer

Major(s)/Minor(s): Information Systems

Expected Graduation Year: Master Student, May 2015

Briefly describe your internship, co-op, research, or service-learning opportunity, including your day-to-day tasks, responsibilities, and assignments.

I interned at Pennsylvania general Energy as Software Developer. It is such a nice place to work. I particularly enjoyed the friendliness of my fellow programmers. They were very helping in answering any questions that I needed answered. My daily routine began with programming in ASP.NET(C#) using MVC framework.My first assignment was to create of an app for the PGE legal department. In addition, I was also I asked to help with the completion of a web based application which was about 80 % done. Despite some challenges, I really enjoyed my internship. I gained a wealth of knowledge from it.

Describe the process of obtaining your internship, research, or co-op opportunity.

A friend of mine told me that there was a position open for software developer intern. I immediately went online to learn something about the company. While I was waiting to hear from them, I spent some time reading about some of the requirements(technologies) for the job that were not very familiar to me. This was very helpful on the day of the interview. Something I would like to mention is that they were asking for 1.5 years of experience to be hired. Even though I did not have that much experience, I did not shy away from applying.

Which of the following resources did you use to find your current experience?

Network

What have you enjoyed the most about your position or organization/company?

The Employees at PGE were very friendly especially the programming team and my supervisor. They made sure I did the work. However, they were very kind in answering any questions that I may have had.

What have you gained from your experience that you could not have gained from another opportunity?

By working on real, hands-on project, I was able to gain in the following technologies. - ASP.NET MVC 4 and 5 Framework - Visual Studio 2012 IDE, Entity Framework 5 with Migrations - HTML5, CSS, JavaScript (JQuery and Ajax), GIT Repository Secondly, I build good professional networks that may become relevant especially in my job hunt after graduation.

What advice would you give to another student who is seeking an internship or similar experience?

My advice would be to make sure you distribute copies of your resume to people. You never know when an opportunity may become available.

Please provide a short reflection or quote about what you liked most about your position / earning internship credit / the internship placement process.

This internship brought the best out me! It taught me that all I needed was an opportunity and a challenge, to fully comprehend my capabilities.

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Name: Jonathan Luckin

Internship, Co-op or Research Site: Asymmetrik | Title of Your Position: Software Engineer Intern

Major(s)/Minor(s): Mathematics, Physics

Expected Graduation Year: May 2017

Briefly describe your internship, co-op, research, or service-learning opportunity, including your day-to-day tasks, responsibilities, and assignments.

I work with software developers in order to create, update, and test new applications. This requires me to use several programming languages as and a wide variety of existing libraries as well as good engineering principles. Since most of the projects I have worked on have been long term, day to day operations are mostly identifying small sections which need to be developed and then creating and testing those sections. I also assisted in writing a white paper, a paper used to describe a possible application which was then sent to possible clients.

Describe the process of obtaining your internship, research, or co-op opportunity.

I found out about the internship opportunity at one of the career fairs sponsored by UMBC during the school year. I talked with company representatives and submitted a resume with them. Several weeks later, I received an e-mail from the company, expressing interest in my application. After conducting a phone interview, I was asked to complete a programming challenge, demonstrating my coding knowledge. I was then brought in to have several in-person interviews. The day after my interview, I was offered a position as an intern. Careers Center helped a lot. I had my resume looked over and edited before I submitted it. Career Center also told me about the career fair where I found out about the company.

Which of the following resources did you use to find your current experience?

Career Fairs

What have you enjoyed the most about your position or organization/company?

I have really enjoyed learning new technologies and methods of development. I have been working with tools and technologies which I was not too familiar with before I started the internship, and it has been very rewarding to learn and apply new knowledge. I also have enjoyed working with such a talented company. My co-workers are very skilled and talented and I am glad for the opportunity to learn from and help them to accomplish tasks.

What have you gained from your experience that you could not have gained from another opportunity?

I have learned how to apply theoretical knowledge in a practical and professional environment. The lifecycle and development of applications cannot easily be taught in the classroom or in a book. I have learned more about application development and engineering principles by working with experienced professionals in the last few months then I have from classes or my own research. I have also had access to programming tools and environments that I was not aware of and would be difficult to access or discover by myself. My mentor helped me set up several of these systems and I have gained a lot of valuable experience. Without this internship, I would not have discovered these programming tools, environments, or methods.

What advice would you give to another student who is seeking an internship or similar experience?

I would advise students to start looking for internships very early. Internships can be very competitive and positions fill up very quickly. Since the hiring process can take a while, looking for a summer internship is not something to put off into the end of the school year, but something that takes place throughout the entire year. I would also recommend that students take an active role in the hiring process. Students should make sure to keep in regular contact with companies to make sure that their applications are being considered. Without regular contact, the company might assume you are no longer interested and just put your application at the bottom of the pile. I recommend that students make sure to research the companies which they apply. Applying for a position which you are not really interested in or qualify for just wastes everyone's time and effort. Make sure that you know your skill set and have a resume and application which reflects your abilities. Finally, it is important to present one's self in a professional manner. Dressing properly and speaking clearly and politely can go a long way in leaving a positive impression on potential employers.

Please provide a short reflection or quote about what you liked most about your position / earning internship credit / the internship placement process.

My internship with Asymmetrik has given me valuable hands-on experience from working alongside talented and experienced professionals with cutting-edge technologies.

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Want to be the next Intern of the Week? Make sure to fill out this form and stay tuned. New interns are announced every Friday!

During the last week, multiple internship positions have been posted to UMBCworks. Check out these new positions today!

MD Oyster Restoration Intern (Paid and Unpaid) (9271824)
Chesapeake Bay Foundation - Annapolis, Maryland

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation seeks Oyster Restoration Interns to be based at both their Philip Merrill Center Environmental Center headquarters located in Annapolis MD, and their Oyster Restoration Center (ORC) in Shady Side, MD as well as various field locations. There are both paid and unpaid positions available for the Spring & Summer of 2015.

Research Assistant (9271791)
UMBC Psychology Department, Social Determinants of Health Inequity Lab

The SODHI Lab investigates psychological and social correlates of racial/ethnic disparities in cardiovascular disease risk. Students who join will be able to gain valuable research experience while earning research credits. We are looking especially for Psychology, Biology, Sociology, and Public Health Majors (however not limited). Applicants must a have a minimum GPA of 3.0 when the application is submitted.

Summer 2015 - START Various Internships (9271737)
Global Terrorism Database (GTD)

The GTD includes systematic data on domestic as well as international terrorist incidents that have occurred during this time period and now includes over 113,000 cases.

Intern positions are available in the following focus areas:
·         Unconventional Weapons Internship
·         Advanced Research
·         Organized Crime
·         Behavioral Indicators of Insider Threats
·         CBRN Terrorism Incident Research
·         Individual Radicalization of Bioscientists
·         Terrorist Ideology

Visit Job 9271737 for more information!

Information and Arts Student Trainee (9271962)
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) - Gaithersburg, Maryland

Provide support to a Visual Information Specialist in developing sophisticated, effective designs for brochures, flyers, fact sheets, web pages, and exhibits; taking photos; and colorizing & otherwise manipulating images to improve them.

The Psychiatry Summer Training and Research (P-STAR) Student Intern (9271738)
The Psychiatry Summer Training and Research (P-STAR) Program

The Psychiatry Summer Training and Research (P-STAR) program offers undergraduates interested in Behavioral and Biological Sciences the opportunity to work for ten weeks under the guidance of faculty members at Johns Hopkins Medicine. Through one-on-one work with a mentor, students gain hands-on experience in academic research and more!

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To access these positions, login to your UMBCworks account (via the link in the Jobs & Internships topic in myUMBC) and find details and application instructions as well as hundreds of other job postings!

Please note you MUST have an approved resume and be released to apply to internships. To schedule an appointment, access our online system in UMBCworks or call (410) 455-2216.

Name: Minhaz Mahmud

Internship, Co-op or Research Site: LinkedIn | Title of Your Position: Site Reliability Engineering Intern

Major(s)/Minor(s): Computer Science

Expected Graduation Year: May 2015

Briefly describe your internship, co-op, research, or service-learning opportunity, including your day-to-day tasks, responsibilities, and assignments.

I worked on LinkedIn's Mobile Site Reliability Engineering Team. The team supports all of LinkedIn's mobile apps including the main LinkedIn app, LinkedIn Jobs, LinkedIn Connected, and more. I worked on building a framework that would assist in monitoring the mobile apps to detect failures in production as soon as they happen so user impact is minimized. Each day I looked at my goals for the week and figured out what I needed to do that day and began working. The project was prototyped and presented at the LinkedIn Intern Fair and to the VP of Engineering.

Describe the process of obtaining your internship, research, or co-op opportunity.

I applied for the position through LinkedIn's careers page. I prepared for the interview by going through Cracking The Coding Interview and doing practice problems. The process consisted of several rounds of technical phone interviews. Since the position was for LinkedIn, I made sure my LinkedIn profile had as much information as it could and was a good representation of me.

Which of the following resources did you use to find your current experience?

LinkedIn Careers Website

What have you enjoyed the most about your position or organization/company?

LinkedIn had a great culture. Help was always available when I needed it. There were a ton of intern events to make the experience as enjoyable as possible. I got to work on an interesting project and I was given any software or hardware I asked for if it would help me with my work. For example, I requested an iPhone 5S with a data plan to test some functionality and I received it just a few hours later. Then of course there is the free food and snacks!

What have you gained from your experience that you could not have gained from another opportunity?

I met a lot of smart people and built some great relationships. I met some of the smartest people in the computer science industry and got to experience first hand what it was like to work in Silicon Valley. I think the experience was definitely unique. I was also able to attend various speaker sessions and company all hands where the CEO and famous authors and influencers spoke.

What advice would you give to another student who is seeking an internship or similar experience?

Apply to a lot of positions and polish your resume, have some personal projects on there! Really understand data structures and algorithms for the technical interviews.

Please provide a short reflection or quote about what you liked most about your position / earning internship credit / the internship placement process.

LinkedIn had a great culture where I felt I could do my best work but still have fun at the same time.

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Want to be the next Intern of the Week? Make sure to fill out this form and stay tuned. New interns are announced every Friday!

The Career Center is very excited to share that The Nielsen Company is coming to UMBC to interview students for their intern and full-time emerging leaders programs. Finance intern and full-time positions were just posted today on UMBCworks.  Nielsen is a global leader in media, marketing and consumer intelligence. Take a look at their video found here to learn more.

3.00 GPA required and Permanent work authorization in the U.S. required

Below are the opportunities that are now available to UMBC candidates. Assignments in Chicago, Illinois; Cincinnati, Ohio; New York, New York; San Francisco, California; and Wilton, Connecticut. Competitive salary, plus generous sign-on bonus to defray housing and relocation costs will be given to new hires which is GREAT.

IMPORTANT: To be considered for an on-campus interview for one or more of the positions below, YOU MUST apply via UMBCworks directly. The company will begin reviewing student applications on THIS FRIDAY. Therefore, apply TODAY.  The deadline is January 29th.   

A Cover Letter is recommended by Nielsen. Cover letters can be addressed to:
Recruiting Lead
The Nielsen Company
770 Broadway
New York, New York 10003