To pursue their dream of computing, International MSc Student Sultan Kazi, joined SDIPs to develop software for One Way Electrical.
About Sultan
Since childhood, Sultan was interested in computing and wanted to know more about how software works. Sultan also dreamed of writing their own software someday. To pursue their dream, Sultan joined Staffordshire University and studied a Software Engineering degree with a focus on architectural concepts of software.
Being an international student, Sultan had concerns about moving to a different country without having visited before and not knowing the work culture, so they looked for support to find out more about securing a placement role on the 'Staffordshire Digital Innovation Partnerships' (SDIPs) programme.
SDIPs is a university programme designed to bring together our students and graduates, local businesses, and university academics to collaborate on a project with the goal of developing a digital innovation for the business and giving students/graduates valuable paid work experience to enhance their future employability.
Support received
Sultan received support from their tutors to help ease their nerves about the interview process. The tutors offered 1-to-1 practice interviews and provided tips and tricks to answering questions effectively and confidently. As a result, Sultan successfully joined One Way Electrical, an electrical company based in Longton, as a placement student to support a software development project.
About the placement
Sultan’s placement was for an electrical company. Sultan developed software to help automate business processes. Their placement was web development focused.
The placement gave Sultan hands-on experience of what they have been studying and had learned more about web technologies. Sultan worked more in-depth with APIs, webhooks and more.
Placement Outcome
After the placement was successfully completed, Sultan returned to the university to complete their degree. When thinking about their prospects, Sultan received a call from a consultant whom they had worked with during their placement. The consultant offered Sultan a position after graduation.
Staffordshire Digital Innovation Partnerships (SDIPs) is a collaborative project between Staffordshire University and Staffordshire County Council; funded by Staffordshire University, Staffordshire County Council and the European Regional Development Fund 2014-2020.
I would definitely recommend placements to other students, especially to the students that do not have any experience at all, because this is the opportunity to go and gain industry experience.