Section 4.2
Internship Value

I feel my internship has aided me in the following areas:

• Communication: I now feel comfortable speaking face to face with a superior and possibly challenging their ideas with my own.

• Documentation: Since my code would be used at a later time by someone other than myself I was forced to be very detailed in my documentation of the complete system that I had created.

• Hardware: I learned about various types of routers, servers, hubs, switches, you name it. I also learned how to make a Cat-5 and RJ-45 cables, something everyone should learn to do given the ridiculous premiums placed on pre-made cables.

• Operating Systems: I became very familiar with a lot of system commands in UNIX and grew accustomed to using the Vi editor.

• Programming: I learned Perl which has proven to be a very simple yet powerful language.

• Research: By being forced to teach myself most of what I learned I was forced to scour the internet for helpful resources, which in turn increased my information seeking skills.

• Teamwork: I learned to better work with a large group on a project, whereas before I have always been a part of most details in a group project, I now had little need to even know how other parts functioned (although it was sometimes beneficial).

All in all I can safely say that this internship has proven to be beneficial to me as a person and as a professional. The above skills that I have acquired and/or nurtured will likely carry with me and prove beneficial wherever life may lead me.

<4.1 My Advice | Home>