The final year project has given me the opportunity to test my metal and apply my knowledge in a project of my choosing. This has been, without a doubt, the most enjoyable module.
Please tell us a bit about your project
My project is a bespoke customer relationship management and point of sale software designed for a small, local kickboxing company in Bexhill.
I chose this project as I believe in the mission statement of the business. They provide support for the public, adults, and juniors with physical or learning disabilities to help improve their hand-eye and mental coordination through regular training and practice. I would love to see this small business flourish.
They displayed a real need for help for keeping track of member lesson payments and attendance. With the skills that I had acquired over the past two years and discovery meetings with their staff, I felt that I had the toolset required to build them a custom solution to meet their requirements.
Through my scholarship, I have access to many great minds in my workplace where I could ask important questions to help sculpt my project at all stages of the development process. Combined with the guidance from my supervisor, Dr. Khuong An Nguyen, I was able to build and deploy this software for their use.
How did you choose your course and why Brighton?
I have always had a fascination with how things work. Computer, and in particular the software that runs on these complex devices, have taken my interest. After experiencing work as a junior software developer at a small company and many personal projects, I found that a foundational knowledge was missing from my skillset. For this reason, I took on the computer science degree at the University of Brighton.
What have been the highlights of your courses?
The data structures and algorithms module in the second year of my course provided a newfound understanding of the computing subject. Combined with the design and architecture module in my final year helped solidify my approach when developing software at a large scale.
The final year project has given me the opportunity to test my metal and apply my knowledge in a project of my choosing. This has been, without a doubt, the most enjoyable module where I have the freedom to work on what I can add true value to.
Did you do a placement year?
My original intention was to fill the large gap in my work experience through a year placement. However I was offered the opportunity to compete for a scholarship at Paxton Access Ltd, a top 100 company in Brighton located close to the university.
My position was Engineering Intern and my role within was working on firmware and software development for their flagship system Paxton10. I found the work rewarding, educational and applicable in the wider context of the industry. These qualities made the short period of my internship as valuable as my education at the university.
What are your plans after graduation?
The education I have gained through the university has provided me the foundation required for taking my skills into the workplace. Having had the privilege of prior experience in the industry, I was able to ask valuable questions and teach what I had learned to my peers which has further reinforced my understanding of the subject.
Paxton had available software developer positions during my final year and after a successful interview with directors, managers and principal engineers, I secured a full-time position as a Graduate UI and API design engineer once I have graduated.
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