From circuits to codes

Not only did Nithyashree switch from electronics to software at Siemens, she also underwent a personality walkover

It was through an email from the college placement cell, that I got to know about the Siemens Student Programme, which was a 14-month internship offered to second-year students. With just a day left for the company’s visit, I did a background check on the company, and applied. After an extensive selection process including an online test and various interviews, I made it to Siemens along with 11 others.

While at Siemens, my fellow interns and I underwent a complete shift — from the frenzy of college to corporate ethics. After carrying out the formalities, we were split into teams of four and a mentor was assigned to each team. I was assigned to the energy management division, the initial excitement of working in the field of energy and electronics ceased, when I was informed that I had to work in software development.

Outside the comfort zone

I didn’t want to get into software, and shared my concern with my manager, asking her to assign me an electronics project. She convinced me to give it a try. I was in a state of ambivalence, but I managed to try my hand at my first software development project. Our team had interns from both computer science and electronics backgrounds, so, we effectively divided the work among ourselves. I had a notion that corporate staff was self-centric, which no longer held true. At Siemens, we believed in ‘Together we deliver’. I moved away from my comfort zone and started learning to code. It was not easy to move from circuits and transistors to codes, but it was fun. I developed a taste for something I had initially despised.

We developed a software tool for test automation. Although we were pretty confident about our software, the testing team disagreed. The application crashed while it was being tested, leaving us in a state of flux. This taught me that the job doesn’t end with the desired output; it is important to develop products which meet the high scalability of the industry. The tool was received well by the concerned stakeholders, after we had fixed the glitches. I was given many challenging tasks there, but I learned, worked on them, and delivered them successfully. I developed an ability to learn quickly and perform better each day. I learnt to multitask and manage my time effectively. I interacted with many people and widened my horizon.

This was a year-long internship. After my second-year summer break, I returned to college and continued working on some office assignments. I found it a little difficult to adjust to the college environment after spending the summer at an established organisation. However, I had transformed — I was a new person then, and my friends and teachers complimented me on the transformation I had undergone.

Nithyashree S, from RV College of Engineering, interned at Siemens for a year.

Courtesy: Internshala, an internship and training platform