Miranda Ramirez Cospin, junior computer science major from Guatemala, has taken advantage of many of the opportunities that ACU has offered to grow and develop her skills inside and outside of the classroom. She is a department tutor for SITC and currently serves as the historian for the International Students Association. Most recently, Miranda utilized the offerings that COBA’s professional development program provides to students to prepare them for internship and job searches which led to an internship offer with iHeartMedia in San Antonio this summer. While at iHeartMedia, Miranda will work as a software engineer where some of her duties will include coding new features (using Java, JavaScript, Python), testing, building integrations, analyzing data, and building dashboards, trends, and reports. Her internship will not only help Miranda in her future job search, but students that learn skills in internships are better able to apply those lessons learned in the workplace to the classroom when they return in the fall.
To prepare for her internship search Miranda attended workshops through the EDGE program, developed by COBA’s Professional Development Manager Steph Brown, where she learned more about what a company looks for in a resume, how to better prepare a professional resume, and skills needed for a successful interview. Miranda encourages students that are looking for internships to start now. “I would recommend looking for internships or jobs soon to know what the company is looking for and what you want to do. Getting an internship or a job is not easy, but it’s not impossible. You need to make time to research, reach out to others, and pay attention to the emails and newsletters sent by the college.” Not only has Miranda prepped outside of the classroom, but the things she has learned in her computer science classes have better prepared her to land the internship by helping her grow her technology skills and develop her work ethic. With the professors asking the question, “How will this help me in a job?”, Miranda will be able to apply what she has been learning to become a better employee in the field of computing.
While she has worked hard to prepare for this internship through her classes and professional development, Miranda’s also made time for a little fun. One of her favorite activities has been spending time with friends from her computer science classes while working on an animation project that includes playing music, laughing, and just enjoying the collegiality of her fellow students which makes the work feel more fun and enjoyable. Miranda recommends that students create personal projects that challenge them. “While college, in general, is complicated doing something where you are uncomfortable will help grow you personally and professionally. Reach out to other majors to make new friends; this allows you to connect to those with different talents.”
ACU has offered Miranda the opportunity to grow not only in her educational and professional skills but as an individual as well. She has discovered more about who she is and what she can do. Still learning and exploring, Miranda is mindful of the beauty that surrounds her. “The world has so much to offer and here at ACU, I got the chance to discover new things. I’ve been able to meet people from different cultures, made friends who became family, learned new things about myself, went on road trips with friends, and learned new things about my faith.” If you’d like to learn more about the School of Information Technology and Computing, click here.