1. Where are you currently interning and what are you doing?
I am currently a full stack developer intern at the Wright Brothers Institute. I work as a software intern directly supporting the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). I help manage all the cloud projects and billings in addition to creating Cloud accounts with the researchers at the AFRL. The internship helped me sharpen my analytical and problem-solving skills.
2. How is it helping you reach your career goals?
My goal is to be a developer who can create software and applications that can help humanity and address issues that impact society. The best part of my current internship is that it is perfectly aligned with my career goals.
3. Do you plan on staying in the Dayton region?
Yes, if I get a good opportunity. Dayton is the next big city for technology.
4. Tell me a little bit about what you’ve learned throughout the course of the internship.
This internship helped me sharpen my Python, HTML, CSS, and JavaScript skills. Additionally, I was also able to learn to work effectively and efficiently remotely. I worked heavily with Git and GitHub and communicated virtually with my project managers and directors.
5. Tell me about how SOCHE has helped you find the internship placement (especially during COVID).
SOCHE has been such an amazing organization to work with. They regularly contact me to check in to see how everything is going. Wright Brothers Institute found me on SOCHE’s talent pool and contacted me. Morgan Plummer has been so much help and amazing to work with. She helped me a lot with documents and processes.
6. Is your internship online or a blend of both and is that working well?
It is mostly online but I have a workspace at the WBI Headquarters.
7. Why do you think it helps to learn on the job?
There was so much that I didn’t know when I came into the internship. I learned a lot of theoretical concepts in my classes but applying them in the practical world is quite different. At WBI I have learned so much about communicating with a team, meeting deadlines, and coming up with innovative ideas to solve problems.
8. What have you been able to accomplish so far at your internship?
I have been able to work on the front-end development side of things on software programs and websites. The front-end of a website for example is the part that the user interacts with. This opportunity has also given me the opportunity to work in an agile environment on various projects that involve learning and testing software. I was able to support and offer solutions for an artificial intelligence (A.I.) challenge for Spring 2021. I am looking at moving into cloud database management next semester.
The Intern Spotlight Series are interviews conducted with current and past SOCHE Interns, discussing the value of their on-the-job experience at their internship.
If you are interested in hiring an intern, contact Patty Buddelmeyer at patty.buddelmeyer@soche.org or (937) 258-8890.
If you are interested in applying for a SOCHE Internship, go to www.socheintern.org.
