Since arriving at Capitol Technology University two years ago, Calvin Cheng has built up considerable expertise in engineering, particularly in the area of RF communications. He has also gained essential insights into another important topic: the process of building a career.
Transferring in from the University of Maryland in College Park, Cheng welcomed the closeness of the Capitol community and the quality interactions it provided with faculty, advisers and peers. He was concerned, however, that he might be at hiring disadvantage because he had not attended a big-name school. Would potential employers know about Capitol and the track record of the university’s students?
“I was hesitant as to whether I’d be able to get seen by employers,” he acknowledges.
As it turned out, Cheng was not only seen by employers but made a strong positive impression. Microsoft Corporation, one of the giants of the technology field, invited him to apply for open positions, called him in for an interview, and then flew him to Texas for a second round. He returned home the following Monday to news that he’d been hired. In July, he’ll be moving to Cambridge, Massachusetts to start his new job.
“I’ll be a support engineer, helping companies in Boston that use SharePoint,” he explains. “When a customer has an issue, I’ll try to fix it. If I can’t, I send it to the developers. I’ll be the intermediary between the customer and developers.”
His pathway to getting hired by Microsoft began with an e-mail to recruiters. He attached his resume and describing his skill sets and strengths, explaining why he felt he would be a great fit. The recruiters agreed. At the Texas interview, Cheng found himself among 30 to 40 other candidates, many from Ivy League schools. He describes the experience as “humbling.”
Landing his first post-graduation job was not an achievement that came out of nowhere. Cheng had already strengthened his employability through a co-op position with Motorola, secured with the help of the Career Services department at the university.
“I was taking the RF Commmunciations class with Professor [Charles] Vergers,” Cheng explains. “At the same time, I was consulting with a career adviser who had been in touch with Motorola; the company was inquiring about potential coops in the area of communications. Because of the class I was taking, as well as the strong focus on RF in the engineering program as a whole, I had accumulated enough background experience and could show them my experience. So they hired me.”
After the Motorola experience, he went to MITRE as a summer intern, joining a team of 9 MITRE employees working in conjunction with government employees to modernize the Transportation Security Administration’s technology infrastructure. “It was a great experience as the work I was doing directly impacted the safety of the nation. Working with MITRE really showed how important communication and collaboration is between co-workers and the customer,” Cheng says.
The experience of the past two years has taught him that building a career is a step-by-step process; you start somewhere, then look for the new opportunities that open up as a result. Although he decided that RF communications wasn’t his long-term goal, his co-op with Motorola was the key first step that got him started. That and the MITRE internship gave him strong credentials and experience; when the Microsoft opportunity arrived, he was prepared to seize it.
“Definitely be proactive in what you find interesting,” Cheng urges incoming students. “Talk to your career advisers a lot, because that’s how I found my first co-op. Once you get the first one, it becomes easier to build up after that. Keep getting other internships, and always try to look for new challenges. Definitely keep learning and trying out new things.”