1. What was Your Role as a Summer Intern at TAC?
Hi! My name is Keira Bruce and I have interned at TAC the last two summers.
The first summer, I worked as an Event Coordinator on events such a Cyber Saturday and Hack the Hospital. I interviewed clients to discover their needs, planned events, prepared quotes, and coordinated with vendors and our team to ensure events ran smoothly.
This past summer, I interned as a Junior Systems Engineer, mapping out user stories and workflows, along with programming a database, to aid in the creation of COIPOND – an application to connect small businesses with government contracts. I also conducted research and testing on various open source LLMs to help with a fellow intern’s AI Assistant project, CAT.
2. How has your career journey been since completing your internship with us, and what exciting opportunities have you pursued?
After completing my internship at TAC, I returned to West Virginia University for the Fall semester, where I became an Experiential Learner with Data Driven West Virginia, an organization that aids local businesses with data analytics and cybersecurity projects. This Spring, I’ve been selected as a Lewis Fellow, where I will lead one of these projects.
I also have been interviewed by several potential employers, recieving two summer internship offers. I will be working for Parsons next summer as a Software Engineering Intern on a cybersecurity-related project.
I’m super excited for both my Lewis Fellowship and summer internship at Parsons! These are amazing opportunities and my experience interning for TAC the past two summers has helped prepare me for what’s ahead.
3. In what ways did your experience at TAC help prepare you for your current role or career path?
The systems engineering skills I developed over the summer have helped me organize information and processes for class projects, interviews, and the cybersecurity project I volunteered on with Data Driven West Virginia this Fall.
Updating management on my work in weekly meetings and my final presentation also helped prepare me to talk to different audiences about my accomplishments, struggles, and steps forward.
The project management skills I learned throughout my internships will be invaluable as I begin leading projects for my fellowship this Spring.
4. Are there specific skills or insights gained during your internship that you find particularly valuable in your current position?
Beyond relating the skills I’ve learned in class to real-world situations, my internships at TAC have taught me to explore and compare solutions independently, communicate clearly in many different contexts, and to discern and deliver the needs of stakeholders. These skills will certainly come in handy as I continue on my career journey.
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