In today’s competitive economy, strategic internships are a top priority for any discerning student. According to researchers at CareerUp, employers are more likely to hire graduates with solid internship experience over those who only have a generic, academic resume.
Internships not only provide students with insights of working in the industry, it also gives them the opportunity to network with experts and learn how to communicate in a professional environment.
Two students from the Faculty of Information Communications and Technology, Samer Ayad Atta Al-Ani from Iraq and Morrocan Walid Glia, both studying for a Bachelor of Computer Science (Hons) Cloud Computing Technology, had the opportunity to intern with T-Systems Malaysia, one of Limkokwing’s many close, industry partners.
T-Systems Technical Project Manager, Mr. Jonah Abdullah, said the interns were placed within different units, to carry out services for one of the company’s customers, Shell.
“I have units in my area that have project management, server deployment, Under database operation we have OS support and also security and compliance. Last but not least we have operational support in terms of chain management and incident management. Interns help schedule in rotation and attach to different departments. In this way they learn how it is working for a big company like Shell,” he said.
Samer interned under the Shell global account where he carried out various tasks for the team. His main task was with the database malware department team where he assigned tickets to database engineers.
“I also do daily reports to make sure that engineers follow up and close tickets due that day.”
Samer said that even during his studies at Limkokwing University, he picked up important skills that made the transition to a real-life working environment much easier.
“At Limkokwing we have great facilities, knowledgeable and supportive lecturers. Therefore I have picked up skills in networking, programming languages like C++ Java. The most important thing I learned at Limkokwing University is to look at things in an open minded way and also to be outspoken and confident about my ideas.”
For Walid, interning at T-Systems provided him with an opportunity to sharpen his skills and help guide him on the right career path.
“T- Systems is a really huge company with a lot of fields so interning here would provide me with the chance to pick which field I would like to follow and sharpen my skills.”
He said it was useful to have mastered basic technical coding, including Java programming, C++, website development and networking skills, while at Limkokwing.
According to T-Systems Manager of Database Middleware Operations, Mr. Aylwin Dilla, Limkokwing students stand out because of their diligence in carrying out tasks that they are assigned to.
“Basically what I have observed is they like to ask questions and it is imperative in this kind of environment to understand the kind of work that we do. The questions they ask are thoughtful and helps them understand the impact of the activity that they doing. They have a constant thirst for learning,” Mr. Dilla acknowledged.
Echoing the same sentiments, Mr. Jonah said Limkokwing students have the initiative to go the extra mile and inquire about their tasks, in order to understand them in depth, something which was lacking compared to new graduates from other institutions.
