Tekniksprånget is a groundbreaking, four month internship for graduated Natural Science or Technical high school students between the ages 18-20. The project is run by the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA) and more than hundred companies participate, located all across Sweden. The purpose is to inspire young people to choose higher technical education by giving the opportunity to try the engineering profession. While there are no expectations on the prior technical knowledge of the intern, there are expectations on a will to learn and develop.
I have done an internship through Tekniksprånget at Subtonomy during the last four months of 2020. I recently graduated from the Natural Science program, and while I want to study engineering in the future, I did not want to start immediately. Instead, I searched for new experiences as well as to broaden my knowledge and Tekniksprånget fulfills both. The opportunity to challenge myself and get a job in what I believe is my future profession, without being qualified yet, made me not hesitate to apply!
So what am I, a high school student, doing at Subtonomy? I am a part of the Development Team. When I came to Subtonomy, I only had basic programming experience and could not complete my assignments without asking for support. My colleagues had a lot of patience with all questions and through their help I am now able to work more independently.
The issues I solve vary but here is a recent example: My task was to make the red and orange alarm icons in one of our applications more “in your face”. There was no further specification of the expected outcome, which was different to life in school, where assignments were always clearly defined. To solve the task, I firstly identified a couple of ideas, thereafter discussed the ideas with others and lastly presented alternative solutions for the company. We then jointly choose one option to be developed. The positive outcome was rewarding and made me feel proud :)
Before and after pictures of one of my latest developments.
Screenshot of what SubSearch overview tab looked like before with the red and orange alarming icons.
This screenshot shows SubSearch overview tab after the development.
One important thing I have realized at Subtonomy is how much I am able to learn. During the past four months I have acquired significant knowledge in a short period of time. Unlike school, I have focused on the same thing 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, for the 16 weeks of my internship. That has made me realize the capacity for personal and professional development. When I look back at my skills the first day compared to what I master now, I can not hide a smile. And the more I learn, the more interesting my days become.
The two main reasons why my internship has been extra rewarding are the transparency of the company as well as the trust they have put in me.
Firstly the transparency: Since the company is small-scaled, I have always known what everyone is doing and where my contribution fits into creating value for the company and our customers.
Secondly the trust: Even though I only had basic programming knowledge when I started, I have received my own development tasks from day one. As I have gained experience, Subtonomy has continued to challenge me and extended my responsibilities. My first tasks were for an internal tool but already during my first month I started to develop for our customers and today I have developed on the overview page of our most sold application. I don’t think an intern would have been given that trust everywhere.
This story did not end the last day of 2020, when my internship ended. Since the 1st of January I am a full time employee at Subtonomy and therefore I will continue to learn, continue to develop (both personally and software wise) and continue to build experience at Subtonomy until the time to get a higher education comes. I am convinced that the perspectives I have (and will) gained during my time at Subtonomy will be a great asset not only during my studies but for the rest of my life.
Want to know more? Let's connect:)
/Anja Sandgren