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Chanell Jenkinson

Excitement and determination are two of the most important characteristics to have when starting a new job and can take you a long way when you reach your first few hurdles at work.

What’s your job about?

As a Graduate Developer in the Customer Engagement space, a lot of my job is about learning the technology and processes that come out of the box with Microsoft’s Power Platform and Dynamics software. I hope to use this in-depth knowledge that I am developing to be able to effectively extend and customise these systems for customers. At the end of the day, my job is about making our customers lives easier, and learning what I need to know to do that effectively is the first step.

What’s your background?

I graduated from the University of Canterbury and hold a Bachelor of Science degree. During my studies, I majored in Chemistry and Computer Science but found myself more drawn towards the more technical career I saw in Computer Science.

My course of study at University was a little bit different from most who did a Bachelor of Science – after all, Chemistry and Computer Science are not majors that normally go hand in hand. When it came to my Chemistry courses I focused mostly on Inorganic Chemistry and took a special interest in materials, nanotechnology, and chemical physics. In my Computer Science courses I decided to try a little bit of everything – from computer graphic design through to embedded systems programming through to web computing architecture. I covered a broad range of programming languages and styles, and the ability to change my mindset from one form to another is a skill that I valued learning.

Could someone with a different background do your job?

It is possible for someone with a different background to do my job. I say this, because the other graduates in similar roles to mine do have different backgrounds. They are all in a similar area (as certain knowledge is needed for the role, such as the ability to code and knowing how certain IT principles work), but they are different focuses. One of the other graduates studied a Bachelor of Engineering in Mechatronics, while another did a 1-year masters in Software Engineering (after spending 10 years creating art for a living!), and yet another graduated from a polytechnic, majoring in information systems

What’s the coolest thing you have done since starting at Intergen?

Since starting at Intergen I’ve has the chance to do and work on some really cool things. The first major highlight would have to be Bootcamp. A week spent in Wellington with all the grads from the 2020 cohort – it was a great way to kick of my career at Intergen and make connections with other grads all across the company, not to mention a lot of fun.

Within my first few weeks in the office, I was also given the chance to sit a Microsoft Exam. While the certification would benefit the company, it would ultimately be mine, and I would get to keep it even if I moved on from Intergen. It was a great learning opportunity and helped me to extend my knowledge of the Microsoft stack. Thanks to the knowledge I gained from sitting that exam, I was able to contribute to a project with the other grads, and made a working mobile app within my first month at Intergen – something I never thought I would be able to

What are the limitations of your job?

The biggest limitation is probably the fact that I sit at a desk behind a screen for usually 8 hours a day. It is something that is expected in this industry, but it does mean that to stay healthy you have to take time out of your day after work to stay active and rest your eyes, so that you limit the side effects you might feel. The best way I have found of dealing with this is to make sure that I take the time to get outside, breathe in the fresh air, and get some exercise.

Three pieces of advice you would like to share with future graduates joining Intergen

  1. Get excited! This role will be your first experience in the industry you have been trying to break into, and it’s a great experience. Excitement and determination are two of the most important characteristics to have when starting a new job and can take you a long way when you reach your first few hurdles at work.
  2. Don’t expect that now that you’ve finished tertiary education and have your graduate job that your days of study are over – you will never stop learning in a job like this. From sitting exams, through to talking with your colleagues, I can guarantee you will learn something new every day.
  3. Don’t worry about being an expert on your first day at the door. No one expects that, and you’ll be given plenty of time to get up to speed with your team. That being said, it’s a good idea to figure out what your in for. I suggest looking up some case studies of the work that Intergen does for clients and start learning about what your day to day life will look like. Any knowledge you have of the technology you will be using is good to help give you a running start.