I found out about the HighTech Bound internship opportunity at the UNH InterOperability Lab through reading other past intern's experiences and projects through blog posts and the IOL website. After spending some time reading through all the cool information, I knew immediately that this was something I had to do. Soon after, I heard more about this opportunity after I took a lab tour with my sister, a current UNH student, and my father.
In my current computer systems classroom at school, we have old obsolete Cisco hardware. In comparison, it was really exciting to see all of the new technology that was stored here at the IOL. This was my first major application process so filling out the forms was kind of daunting. The minutes before the interview felt like hours, but as soon as I started talking to the employees, that anxiety went away. Employees here are incredibly helpful and personable, it is a place that I enjoyed spending time at.
On the first day of the internship I admit, I was fairly nervous. However, I quickly realized that the other interns shared many interests that I did, such as video games, computers, and many other things. Being in a work environment that is as relaxed as the IOL is a good way to be introduced to the ‘real world.’ There is also a factor of, “One click of a button could mess all this up.” I had never had that in the classroom because if I wiped a configuration of a router it was not the end of the world, but here it could really halt some things. I have been getting more comfortable with using equipment that is important to the operations of a business.
During my time as an intern I worked on installing the Airtames, a device for wallboards, screencasting and more, onto various hallway TVs and conference room TVs. I enjoyed this project because it will be useful for years to come and people will use it after I am an intern. Leaving my mark at a company like this is a great opportunity and something I am proud to look back on.
This internship has really given me future opportunities in the short four weeks, than I have ever gotten before. Visiting DellEMC, QA Cafe, and Liberty Mutual have all been helpful to see how these business operate and how different businesses are, well, different. QA Cafe is a small bright company and Dell EMC is a huge corporation that is multinational. Interacting and connecting with these people is an opportunity that not many people my age get to have.
I am incredibly lucky to get this experience with the people I have interacted with, it was an experience I would never trade for any other. This lab is a really welcoming environment and if you think you would want to work here I encourage you to apply, it’s worth a shot.