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Brought to you from your @GoogleStudents friends. From pre-university to PhD (and beyond), we got you.
Getting to Know a PhD
December 26, 2013
Google offers a variety of opportunities for PhDs who wish to gain industry experience. Through our Getting to Know a PhD series, we’ll provide a glimpse into some of these opportunities as well as the impactful projects PhDs at Google work on. Today we’re featuring
Ian Zerny
, a Software Engineer in our Aarhus office who interned on the
Dart Language
team.
So Ian, tell us about yourself and your PhD topic...
I’m Danish/Canadian and I completed my PhD under the supervision of
Olivier Danvy
at
Aarhus University
. During my studies I investigated techniques for the construction and inter-derivation of semantic descriptions for programming languages, in particular, for lazy languages, like Haskell. These techniques can be used to help design specifications for programming languages and to mechanically derive implementations for them.
I’m also a recipient of the
Google European Doctoral Fellowship
in Programming Technology. As part of the fellowship I was provided a Google mentor which was great for getting a different perspective on my research.
Why did you apply for an internship at Google?
Google has a strong reputation and works on a wide range of topics including the design and implementation of programming languages, which I find extremely interesting.
Was there a connection between your internship and your PhD topic?
My PhD topic was about design and specification of programming languages, while my internship and current work is about language implementation. The internship was a nice change of pace from dissertation writing and provided some concrete work within a related domain.
What did you work on during your internship with Google and what are you working on at Google now?
During my internship, I worked on optimizing the Virtual Machine (VM) for Dart, a new programming language for the web designed by Google. The Dart VM is a standalone VM for running Dart programs and is now about twice as fast as the fastest JavaScript VM.
Currently, I’m working on the open source
Oilpan project
, designing and implementing trace-based garbage collection for the Blink rendering engine in Google Chrome. Oilpan will make Chrome less memory intensive, more secure and easier to maintain.
What’s it like working on the Dart and Chrome team?
It’s great! Both teams are very dedicated and enthusiastic about their respective projects. Chrome has improved the way we use the web today and continues to push boundaries. The Dart project is an exciting attempt to provide web programmers with an alternative choice for writing web applications that is scalable and fast. Both projects are also Open Source and developed as part of a wider community. Working on them has been both challenging and exciting!
What key skills have you gained from your time at Google?
Technically, I’ve become a better programmer and gained practical experience with languages and tools, some new and some already known to me. On a higher level, I’ve gained experience working in the industry and with a large team.
You recently converted into a new grad SWE role. Did your internship experience impact your thoughts about a future career?
Yes. Specifically, it provided me with an accurate picture of what it would be like to work at Google. During my internship I worked with a great team on projects that are actively changing the landscape of the web. Based on my internship experience, I decided to apply for a full-time position and started straight after finishing my dissertation.
Why should a PhD student apply for an internship at Google? Did your internship experience impact your thoughts about a future career? Any advice to offer?
I strongly recommend applying for an internship. It’s a great way to learn about how programming technology is actively being used. Learning what it’s like to work in the industry and in a large team will also help to plan your career. My internship provided me with an accurate picture of what it would be like to work at Google. I worked with a great team on projects that are actively changing the landscape of the web. Based on my internship experience, I decided to apply for a full-time position and started straight after finishing my dissertation.
Try it out. You’ll learn a lot and it’s fun too!
Google is currently accepting applications for internships for PhDs. For more information, please visit our
Google Students Job site
.
Posted by Beate List, Research Programs Specialist, EMEA
The Google Test and Development Environment - Pt. 1: Office and Equipment
December 20, 2013
Re-shared from the
Google Testing Blog
.
When conducting interviews, I often get questions about our workspace and engineering environment. What IDEs do you use? What programming languages are most common? What kind of tools do you have for testing? What does the workspace look like?
Google is a company that is constantly pushing to improve itself. Just like software development itself, most environment improvements happen via a bottom-up approach. All engineers are responsible for fine-tuning, experimenting with, and improving our process, with a goal of eliminating barriers to creating products that amaze.
Office space and engineering equipment can have a considerable impact on productivity. I’ll focus on these areas of our work environment in this first article of a series on the topic.
Office layout
Google is a highly collaborative workplace, so the open floor plan suits our engineering process. Project teams composed of Software Engineers (SWEs), Software Engineers in Test (SETs), and Test Engineers (TEs) all sit near each other or in large rooms together. The test-focused engineers are involved in every step of the development process, so it’s critical for them to sit with the product developers. This keeps the lines of communication open.
Google Munich
The office space is far from rigid, and teams often rearrange desks to suit their preferences. The facilities team recently finished renovating a new floor in the New York City office, and after a day of engineering debates on optimal arrangements and white board diagrams, the floor was completely transformed.
Besides the main office areas, there are lounge areas to which Googlers go for a change of scenery or a little peace and quiet. If you are trying to avoid becoming a casualty of The Great Foam Dart War, lounges are a great place to hide.
Google Dublin
Working with remote teams
Google’s worldwide headquarters is in Mountain View, CA, but it’s a very global company, and our project teams are often distributed across multiple sites. To help keep teams well connected, most of our conference rooms have video conferencing equipment. We make frequent use of this equipment for team meetings, presentations, and quick chats.
Google Boston
What’s at your desk?
All engineers get high-end machines and have easy access to data center machines for running large tasks. A new member on my team recently mentioned that his Google machine has 16 times the memory of the machine at his previous company.
Most Google code runs on Linux, so the majority of development is done on Linux workstations. However, those that work on client code for Windows, OS X, or mobile, develop on relevant OSes. For displays, each engineer has a choice of either two 24 inch monitors or one 30 inch monitor. We also get our choice of laptop, picking from various models of Chromebook, MacBook, or Linux. These come in handy when going to meetings, lounges, or working remotely.
Google Zurich
Thoughts?
We are interested to hear your thoughts on this topic. Do you prefer an open-office layout, cubicles, or private offices? Should test teams be embedded with development teams, or should they operate separately? Do the benefits of offering engineers high-end equipment outweigh the costs?
Posted by Anthony Vallone
Better Know an Intern - Matthew Dierker
December 19, 2013
Google Interns are located at offices all across the globe, and represent a broad diversity of backgrounds, concentrations and interests. Inspired by Steven Colbert’s
Better Know a District
, we’re bringing to you “Better Know an Intern!” The series introduces you to our interns across the globe, and will get you the scoop on the impactful projects they work on, their interests and passions, and what it’s really like to intern at Google straight from the source.
For our today's post, meet Matthew Dierker, an intern on the Google Voice team.
My name is Matthew Dierker, and I’m a rising junior in computer science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign! I grew up in Sugar Land, Texas (that’s really the name!) and played trumpet for 8 years through middle school and high school.
1. Of all the companies to apply for, why did you want to work at Google?
As a high school junior at a programming summer camp, I took a tour of Google’s Mountain View campus. I remember seeing the main campus and being amazed at how many amazing colorful things were there. From then on, I thought of Google as a dream job. In college I talked to Google at career fairs and slowly built up my Google swag collection. After my interview sophomore year, I talked to engineers on three teams (one of which was Google Voice) and the rest is history!
2. In what way(s) has Google impacted you, and how have you left an impact at Google?
Seeing a self-driving car in person for the first time was cool, but even cooler was getting Google Glass while still an intern and talking to a friend about her work on Project Loon. Google’s work is mind-bogglingly awesome sometimes, and it’s inspiring to think about how I fit in to the bigger picture.
I’ve been able to help too! When I first arrived at Google, my host gave me a couple of areas I could contribute to on Google Voice. I chose to build an internal API on the Voice infrastructure for programs that need to make or receive calls. I also rewrote Speak To Tweet using the API, and it’s now running on my code! The best part of it all has been my team. They’ve answered all my questions and made every day fun. Learning about infrastructure has been a new experience for me and it’s led to a great summer on Voice.
Finally, one impactful side project was our game of Intern Assassins. We had almost 250 interns sign up to play the game, and with some help from friends I wrote the website/texting system to power it all. As a player it was fun to be constantly suspicious, and as an organizer we had a rewarding game. I’m hoping to open source the system in the future!
3. What is the most interesting/exciting thing that you have been able to do as a Google intern? Your “Magic Moment”?
Most of the magic for me is in how cool every single day with the other interns is! Every Friday night, a bunch of us have board game night, and I love a game called Resistance that we play all the time there. I found a group of friends that I really liked, we planned adventures every weekend, and after each one we got to go back and code at Google. Whether it’s hanging out at a Google party on a roof or chilling in the ball pit at 2:00 AM after a hackathon, the entire summer has been an unbelievable experience.
If I had to pick just one moment, it would be getting to take a picture with Larry and Sergey. After Intern Assassins wrapped up, Larry and Sergey talked about it for a few minutes at a weekly company meeting called TGIF. We even got Alan Eustace (Google’s SVP of Knowledge) to “assassinate” Sergey with a three and a half foot spoon! It was a great way to end an awesome summer.
4. Aside from working for Google, what kinds of organizations/clubs/activities are you involved with in your community / around your school’s campus?
I help run a school project called Party Rock Illinois in which 30 people we sync 1600 ft. of Christmas lights, lasers, and LED panels to music. It’s been challenging with lots of setbacks, but when something works it’s an amazing feeling.
Outside of Party Rock, I’m one of two social chairs for the Association for Computing Machinery at UIUC. Hanging out in our lounges is an awesome way to make friends with people in your courses. I love it because it’s turned classmates into some of my best friends. I’m also a big lover of hackathons! Finally, I’m a Google Student Ambassador for UIUC. We’ve planned a scavenger hunt for freshmen, and have some other awesome events coming up this year!
5. What types of lessons/skills have you learned at Google that you will take back to school after this summer ends?
First, Google has taught me to be a better software engineer. In the code review process, my host showed me how to take working code and made it better working code. It’s a hard concept to grasp on my own because both versions work, but one is better!
In addition this summer, we hosted some ice cream weekends for interns at our corporate housing. At events like these, it’s sometimes hard to put your fear behind you, go up to someone, introduce yourself and try to make friends. Being able to do that is something I’ll definitely bring back to school in my role as a leader and as a Google Student Ambassador. Finally, I’m going to take back the excitement of working on the latest and greatest in tech by coding for devices like Google Glass and the Chromecast.
6. Any advice for students interested in being a Google intern?
The best advice I can give you is to just make something cool. Whether it’s at a hackathon or just in your house, make a game, play with a device, or just make “Hello World” on your screen and take it from there. Once you’re in college, take chances that seem interesting. It might be as simple as going to a Google tech talk, or the hackathon that’s at school, or even just talking to the people next to you in class. If you can get out of your dorm room and have a good time in computer science, you’re on the right track!
7. Favorite micro-kitchen snack?
I love sugar. Gummy bears hands down!
Posted by Sarah Henderson, Student Development Team
Announcing the judges panel for the AdMob Student App Challenge
December 11, 2013
Google is proud to announce the judging panel for The AdMob Student App Challenge. Our six judges have either built apps or advised developers, and between them have accumulated hundreds of millions of downloads.
Toni Fingerroos:
Toni Fingerroos is the CEO and founder of the mobile games company Fingersoft. He developed
Hill Climb Racing
which reached 1st place in top free games in the USA in Google Play and has been downloaded over 100 million times globally. In 2013 he received the Game Developer of the Year award in Finland. Fingerroos came up with the name Fingersoft when he was ten years old, with a passion for developing games. After years of making games for his friends to enjoy he wanted to learn more about business and economics. He co-founded two companies and also assumed managerial responsibility. After gaining experience from these businesses he was ready to start a company of his own that would make use of his skills and laid-back attitude. In 2012 he officially founded Fingersoft Ltd. pursuing his life-long dream of running an independent game studio.
Edward Kim:
Edward Kim got his start in the Android development world by developing and entering his apps in various Android development contests. Most notably, he won 3rd place in Google's Android Developer Challenge 2, taking a $25,000 prize. He also won 1st place in Verizon's ‘Power Your App’ contest, taking a $75,000 prize. Edward Kim is the co-founder and CTO of
ZenPayroll
. Prior to co-founding ZenPayroll, Edward was the CEO and co-founder of Picwing.com, a Y Combinator-funded startup and photo-printing platform that was acquired in 2011. Edward holds a BS and MS in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University.
Artavazd Mehrabyan:
Artavazd Mehrabyan is co-founder & COO of
PicsArt
: a fun and full-featured mobile photo editing, drawing app, and art community for Android and iOS. He worked previously as Senior Software Architect at prominent web portal Lycos Europe. Artavazd has conducted practical classes in Software Architecture at the American University of Armenia, and has been a guest lecturer at Yerevan State Polytechnic. He is a graduate of the American University of Armenia.
Sana Choudary:
Over the last two years Sana has been the CEO and co-founder of YetiZen, a cornerstone of the game developer ecosystem. This includes the
YetiZen accelerator
, the wildly popular games-focused accelerator and the
YetiZen Innovation Lab
, the only game developer community space of its kind for game developer business education and synergy in the new and ever evolving world of social mobile. It has served over 10,000 game developers in the last 12 months. Sana Choudary has a reputation for being a powerful force in creating successful entrepreneurs. She has been highly active in the entrepreneurial and gaming communities throughout her career as a leading member of Women 2.0, StartupWeekend; and as a co-founder of NYC’s largest entrepreneurial group, Ultra Light Startups. In addition to YetiZen, Sana chairs TiE SF and TiEcon Youth Track, the world's largest entrepreneurship conference. Through YetiZen, Sana is intimately involved with hundreds of startups, gaming veterans, investors, and gaming giants, giving her a unique and unparalleled perspective on the game space.
Jake Ward:
Jake Ward oversees operations and programming for the
Application Developers Alliance
, including media relations, marketing, membership and corporate partnerships. He has more than 10 years of experience in public relations, marketing and public policy. He has led strategic communication and issue-advocacy campaigns on behalf of Fortune 100 companies, public interest groups and industry associations.
Taizo Son:
Taizo San is CEO at
Movida Japan
, Chairman at GungHo Online Entertainment and Advisor at SoftBank. “I have worked fervently for the past 15 years to start new IT-related venture companies. In 2002 I founded GungHo, one of Japan’s most successful online gaming companies, and our flagship game Puzzle & Dragons is the world’s top grossing app for iOS and Android. With
Movida Japan
, a seed accelerator I founded in 2009, we aim to significantly boost the venture ecosystem in East Asia by 2030. I also serve as an Advisor at SoftBank, a Japanese Telecom and IT conglomerate with more than 1300 subsidiaries and affiliates worldwide, founded and led by my brother Masayoshi Son.“
Our panel is excited to see what our participants come up with during the contest. Be sure to follow
AdMob on Google +
for any Challenge-related announcements, and to check out the
Challenge website
.
Posted by Jeff Miner, AdMob Student App Challenge team
AdMob Student App Challenge: Key dates for participants
December 8, 2013
The AdMob Student App Challenge launched early last week, and while registration will remain open until March 31, it will be important for all teams to be aware of some key deadlines and events. See below for timeline of events, which is you can find on the
AdMob Student App Challenge website
as well.
Student registration window:
through 31 March 2014
Competition window:
through 15 April 2014
Deadline for submitting app for judge’s review:
31 March 2014
Deadline for submitting business report:
15 April 2014
Finalists Announcements:
15 May 2014
Global Winner Announcement:
28 May 2014
To stay up to date on any and all Challenge-related announcements, be sure to follow
AdMob on Google +
.
Posted by Sarah Henderson, Student Development Team
Build an app to win awesome Google prizes in The AdMob Student App Challenge
November 25, 2013
Are you a student who loves to code or has a great idea for a mobile app? Maybe you’re building one right now. Imagine that one day your app could be seen by millions of users.
You’re invited to take part in The AdMob Student App Challenge, a mobile app contest open exclusively to students around the world. The goal is to build a great app (either Android or iOS), create a revenue stream using AdMob's in-app advertising, and tell us about your experience in a written business report. You can either build the app on your own or form a team of up to five students.
Check out the
YouTube Video
to learn more!
To win the Challenge, you'll need a great app and a good business strategy that focuses on how you manage the project, gain users and leverage AdMob. In the next few weeks we’ll be announcing the respected app industry leaders who’ll be on the judging panel.
We’ve got some awesome prizes if you win: The winning team will receive:
A 7-night trip to San Francisco with spending money, including a trip to the Google headquarters in Mountain View.
The winning app will be featured on the Google Play store and on the Play Store's social channels (certain conditions apply).*
An opportunity to star in your own case study video to tell your story.
A Nexus 7 device for each team member.
As well as one overall winner, there'll be a winner from each of the four global regions (North America, Latin America, Europe, Middle East & Africa, and Asia Pacific), who'll receive computing devices and an honorary mention on the AdMob website.
The Challenge starts today and you have until March 31, 2014 to build a winning app. Visit the
AdMob website
to learn more and to
register
. The winners will be announced in May 2014.
Follow the
AdMob G+ page
for regular updates and announcements.
*Only apps made available through the Play Store will have an opportunity to be featured. See the
Official Rules
for more details.
Posted by Mike Schipper, Product Marketing, AdMob
Better Know an Intern - Christina Lidwin
November 21, 2013
Google Interns are located at offices all across the globe, and represent a broad diversity of backgrounds, concentrations and interests. Inspired by Steven Colbert’s
Better Know a District
, we’re bringing to you “Better Know an Intern!” The series introduces you to our interns across the globe, and will get you the scoop on the impactful projects they work on, their interests and passions, and what it’s really like to intern at Google straight from the source.
For our today's post, meet Christina Lidwin, a senior computer science major and first year Creative Technologies master’s student at Virginia Tech, and an intern on the Billing team.
1. Of all the companies to apply for, why did you want to work at Google?
During my sophomore year, I was looking to participate in a second technical summer internship. I had enjoyed working for a software company in Northern Virginia, and wanted to experience a new company, location, and culture. I had heard excellent things about Google, and I applied for Google’s
Engineering Practicum program
, which targets current sophomores/rising college juniors. This program stood out for me because of the collaborative project between full-time employees and other interns my age and skill level, career-building classes taught by people from different backgrounds and areas in the industry, and the mentorship opportunities.
Needless to say, I had a great time as an Engineering Practicum intern in Google’s Cambridge office, and I was thrilled to become a Google Student Ambassador and be invited back as a Software Engineering Intern for summer 2013 at headquarters in Mountain View.
2. In what way(s) has Google impacted you, and how have you left an impact at Google?
The motto “there’s always more information out there” is truly a way of life at Google. With so many technologies, languages, concepts, and programs, Google has impacted me by showing me a lifestyle in which everyday presents a new, fun, and exciting concept or challenge to engage with and learn. My hosts/managers, mentors, and peers are all uniquely inspiring people, and I am always amazed by how willing people are to engage in conversation and how much knowledge is shared throughout the company.
Working for Google has also taught me that I can (yes, even as an intern) make an impact for the company. Last summer as an Engineering Practicum intern, I worked with two fellow interns and three hosts to experiment with Robotium Testing for Google Play apps. The experiments help developers in Google Play create visual and simulated interactive tests on Android devices, so they can spend less time on manual testing and more time on developing new features. This summer, I am working within the Google Billing teams to create a new notifications viewer, which helps internal Billing team engineers better understand how events and notifications are processed and manage activity in customer accounts. Both of these projects have helped me see that the work I am doing has a much larger impact than on my own personal development or the productivity of my team; anything I am doing to help make our lives easier as engineers helps change the world.
I also enjoy contributing to Google in more ways than being a software engineering intern. Whether it is volunteering in one of Google’s service projects, participating in a program or event Google is hosting, or being a resource to Google on my university’s campus, it is exciting to be impacted and impact Google in different ways.
3. What is the most interesting/exciting thing that you have been able to do as a Google intern? Your “Magic Moment”?
That's me!
The “magic moments” I have are the times when I get to share my experiences at Google with others. Being able to share what I do and talk to people about Google’s company and culture reminds me how unique Google is and I feel humbled to be a part of it.
This summer, my big “magic moment” was participating in Google’s
Computer Science Summer Institute (CSSI) program
as one of the first intern Resident Advisors. For three weeks, I got to spend my evenings and free time with my newest technical peers, rising freshmen, talking to them about my experiences as a college student and intern. I was also around to help them learn HTML, CSS, Javascript, Python, and Google App Engine, and this whole experience reminded me why I became passionate about Computer Science in the first place. There are so many cool things you can do in Computer Science, and being surrounded by people who are just getting started is inspiring because they ask a lot of questions and help you look at concepts from new and different angles. I definitely recommend the experience!
4. Aside from working for Google, what kinds of organizations/clubs/activities are you involved with in your community / around your school’s campus?
Outside of my internship and being a Google Student Ambassador, I enjoy playing saxophone as a member of the Newman Community Musicians at Virginia Tech (we even recorded a CD this past spring!), reading design/web development blogs, visiting my high school to talk to Computer Science/Math students about pursuing technology in college, participating in University Honors study abroad and freshmen mentorship programs, and cheering on my college football team (Go Hokies!).
5. What types of lessons/skills have you learned at Google that you will take back to school after this summer ends?
Being involved in the CSSI program and working with Google this summer has given me a greater sense of the phrase “anything is possible.” There are really interesting technical challenges to be solved and exciting products to be designed and developed, and there are so many resources available, that the possibilities for what I can do are endless. Going back to school, I feel inspired to spend more time “inventing the future” (as my school motto goes) through the lense of making information more universally accessible and useful to others.
I am also very excited to be returning to Virginia Tech in the Fall to represent Google as a Student Ambassador for the second year in a row. Throughout the year, I get to use the knowledge I have learned over the summer about Google to engage with various student organizations and academic programs around campus. It will be nice to share the magic of Google with Hokie nation, while also keeping in touch with Google representatives and letting them know more about our school.
6. Any advice for students interested in being a Google intern?
Google is a company where you have the ability to bring your passions to life. While that can be as a software engineer, there are plenty of ways to contribute to the community, give back, and help keep Google a forward-moving, innovative, and fun-to-work-and-engage-with company. Do not be afraid to showcase your talents and extracurricular interests on your resume and in your interviews, because Google is about a lot more than understanding how to code.
7. Favorite micro-kitchen snack?
Hands down, the Ghirardelli Milk Chocolate Squares with Caramel Filling :)
Interested in learning more about our internship opportunities? Please visit our
student jobs site
and apply today!
Posted by Sarah Henderson, Student Development Team
A scholar’s reflection on the 2013 Google Scholars’ Retreat
November 19, 2013
Editor’s Note:
North America Google Scholarships deadlines extended to
January 6, 2014
! See
google.com/students/scholarships
for more details
.
In 2013, we selected nearly 100 scholars who were all invited to attend our Scholars’ Retreat, held at Google’s office in New York City this summer. The Scholars’ Retreat brings together our scholarship recipients to attend technical and career development sessions and provide opportunities to network with one another and with Googlers while experiencing Google’s unique culture. In today’s post, Carolyn, one of our
Anita Borg Scholars
from Simon Fraser University, shares about her experience and learnings from the retreat.
On April 23, I received a congratulatory email from Google, naming me one of 30 recipients of the 2013 Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship! As a Google Scholar, I would be heading that summer to Googleplex East - Google's New York City headquarters - for their annual Google Scholars' Retreat!
I landed at JFK International Airport the morning of July 17. Here, I met up with a group of fellow Google Scholars as we headed to the hotel in Manhattan, located a few blocks from the Google office. Since check-in for the retreat wasn't until later that afternoon, a few of us dropped our bags off at the hotel and took the opportunity to explore the city, visiting Central Park, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Museum of Mathematics!
After a few hours of sightseeing, we hopped onto the subway and headed towards the Google office. Here we met with all the scholars from Google's scholarship programs. Once checked in and decked out with Google swag, we were greeted with a welcome talk from Alfred Spector, VP of Engineering and Research, who shared Google’s approach on research and innovation. Following the talk, we headed off to dinner. This was our first glimpse of eating at the Google office! The Water Tower room and cafeteria were just one of many themed venues we would visit during our retreat.
Alfred Spector, VP of Engineering and Research
The next day we were treated to breakfast at the Google office, followed by a passionate tech talk by Justin Kosslyn, a Product Manager in Google Ideas. He engaged us in a deep discussion about serious issues prevalent in the world today that his group was working on, including human trafficking, mapping arms data, and using the Internet to counter violent extremism. Sitting amongst this audience helped me see exactly why we were selected to be there - we were young, bright minds, curious and eager to use technology to shape the world.
The rest of the morning consisted of interview and resume workshops, which provided us with useful suggestions to aid in our career development. Following this, I joined a group of fellow PhD students for an exclusive luncheon with existing Google researchers. Here, we shared our research areas and projects amongst the group, along with our future plans for positions in industry or academia. We also had the opportunity to find out more about working at Google!
One of the best sessions was the career panel, where four Googlers candidly shared their work experience at Google and addressed questions from the scholars about getting a foot in the door. Topics including academic credentials, GPAs, internships, work/life balance, and the 'Google culture'. Following the panel discussion, we attended a poster session, and then headed over to the restaurant reserved for our dinner. The next day would be the start of our 24HoursofGood!
Scholars’ poster session
24HoursofGood was the first hackathon at a Scholars' Retreat. I was teamed up with three other scholars to solve a technical problem with a non-profit organization, LEAD (LEADership Education & Development) who provide communities for students to gain skills to work in business, computer science, and engineering fields. We started with a quick App Engine 'bootcamp' with Arun Nagarajan, Senior Developer at Google and worked our way through the next 24 hours (fuelled by more food, caffeine, and swag!). It was my first hackathon event ever, and Google made it especially memorable. Each of the 19 teams presented their work and Google judges picked the top teams. I especially enjoyed collaborating with three other team members whose areas of expertise in computer science were different from mine. We were each able to contribute to the task in our own ways and I had tons of fun learning from my group (the unlimited supply of candy was a bonus)! Although challenging to code for 24 hours, we managed through brief yoga sessions, midnight pizza, naps, and coffee. It was an absolute blast!
The retreat days flew by. I made new friends, networked with Googlers and enjoyed my 3-day retreat in NYC. My summer of 2013... Google Scholars' Retreat in NYC = Food + Fun + Friends.
And then a surprise bonus! In September, Google offered to sponsor our travel and attendance to the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing in Minneapolis, MN. Anita Borg Memorial scholarship winners were reunited (amongst 4,600 other women) and we had the opportunity to spend four days attending tech talks geared towards women in computer science. Especially memorable was our meeting with Google executives, including Alan Eustace, Senior VP of Engineering!
My 2013 year as a Google Scholar has been an absolute privilege and I look forward to future collaborations with Google.
Congratulations once again to all Google Scholars!
Remember to visit
www.google.com/students/scholarships
to find out more about our scholarships and
apply by December 2
!
Azusa Liu, Tech Student Development Programs
From your CS class to the real world: a deep dive into open source
November 18, 2013
Cross posted from the
Official Google Blog
Today marks the start of
Google Code-in
, a global online contest for pre-university students (13-17 years old) interested in learning more about open source software. Participating students have an opportunity to work on real world software projects and earn cool prizes for their effort.
For the next seven weeks students from around the world will be able to choose from an extensive list of tasks created by
10 open source projects
. Some tasks require coding in a variety of programming languages, creating documentation, doing marketing outreach or working on user interfaces.
Participants earn points for each task they successfully complete to win T-shirts and certificates. At the end of the contest, 20 students will be selected as grand prize winners and flown to Google’s Mountain View, California headquarters. Winners will receive a trip to San Francisco, a tour of the Googleplex and a chance to meet with Google engineers.
Google Code-in 2012 grand prize winners at the Googleplex with a self driving car
More than 1,200 students from 71 countries and 730 schools have participated in Google Code-in over the past three years. Last year, our 20 grand prize winners came from 12 countries on five continents!
We hope this year’s participants will enjoy learning about open source development while building their technical skills and making an impact on these organizations. Please review our
program site
for contest rules, frequently asked questions and to get started!
By Stephanie Taylor, Open Source Programs
Applications now open for Google EMEA scholarships - Apply today!
November 18, 2013
We are very excited to announce two Google scholarship opportunities for university students in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA).
The Google EMEA Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship
honors the memory of
Dr. Anita Borg
who devoted her life to encouraging the presence of women in computing. The scholarship is open to current female undergraduate or graduate students who will be studying at a university in Europe, the Middle East or Africa for the 2014-2015 academic year.
The Google Europe Scholarship for Students with Disabilities
aims to help dismantle barriers for students with disabilities as well as encourage them to excel in their studies and become active role models and leaders in technology. The scholarship is open to current undergraduate or graduate students with disabilities who will be studying at a university in Europe for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Applicants should be enrolled in a computer science, computer engineering, or closely related technical program and maintain a record of strong academic performance. Recipients of the scholarships will each receive a € 7,000 (or equivalent) award for the 2014-2015 academic year.
The deadline for all scholarships is
Monday, February 17, 2014, 17:00 GMT
. Apply today!
For more on Google’s scholarships please visit
www.google.com/students/scholarships
.
Posted by Efrat Aghassy, Tech Student Development Programs Specialist, EMEA
Latin America scholars reflect on experience at Google Scholars’ Retreat
November 14, 2013
Each summer we host a Scholars’ Retreat where Google scholarship recipients are invited to a Google office to celebrate their accomplishments, interact with fellow scholars, and hear talks from Google engineers. In addition to inviting our scholars from universities in the US and Canada, this year we also invited our scholarship recipients from Latin America. We spoke with three of these recipients to hear about their experiences.
Thanks for joining us! Can you introduce yourself?
Daniel
: My name is Daniel and I’m studying computer engineering at Universidad de Santiago in Chile.
María
: I’m María and I’m studying software engineering at Instituto Tecnológico de Buenos Aires in Argentina.
Fernando
: I’m Fernando and I’m studying computer systems engineering at Universidad de los Andes in Colombia.
Tell us a bit about the Latin America Scholars’ Retreat that you participated in. What was that like?
Fernando
: Before the Google Scholars’ Retreat in New York City, the scholars from Latin America were invited to a “mini summit”. There were 13 students from Chile, Colombia and Argentina and I have to say it was a humbling experience. I met startup founders, hackers, musicians, ex-professional soccer players and skillful engineers writing awesome programs.
María
: We started the morning with breakfast then participated in a scavenger hunt through Midtown working out riddles in teams while getting to know places such as Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Central Park.
Daniel
: Then we got a tour of the Google NYC office and it was really incredible to see firsthand that everything that is said about the "Google way" of working is true: the atmosphere is relaxed, there’s free food everywhere, and the office space is built in very ingenious ways. “They know exactly how to keep developers happy!” is what many of us said. In addition to the office tour, the mini summit included sessions on how to improve our resumes, and a career panel with engineers and interns from Google, which was incredibly motivating. They spoke about the work and the professional and personal growth they had experienced. It was great to hear from them on what they did and how they came to Google.
What was your experience like once the official Scholar’s Retreat began?
Daniel:
After the mini summit we officially began the Google Scholars’ Retreat. Now we were with all Google scholarship recipients from across North America! We let go of the Spanish language and began to speak English.
Maria
: Welcome speaker Alfred Spector gave us sincere advice on how to face our careers. Later on, we also took a “True Colors Personality Test” to help us to get to know ourselves better, to be aware of our strengths and weaknesses. Then we gathered with more scholars of the same color, laughed at our weaknesses and realized we could complement them with other people’s abilities.
And that was just day one! What activities did you do on the second day?
María:
The second day started with a talk by a Googler who addressed how Google can fight real problems in society such as human trafficking. I have always been concerned about issues like this so when the talk began I just couldn't believe the world that was being opened to my eyes in just less than an hour. I was surprised about Google's diversity and how that helps us to see things we wouldn’t notice in different backgrounds, as a Googler from a career panel said a few hours later.
Daniel:
One of the activities I enjoyed the most on the second day was the technical interview workshop. We simulated a real technical interview where we were split into groups of four or five accompanied by a Google engineer. We worked on whiteboards to solve algorithmic interview problems. We did the best we could to come up with an acceptable solution and learned a lot about what the engineers look for when interviewing candidates.
...and that wasn’t all, right?
Daniel:
Nope! On Friday, we participated in 24 Hours of Good, a hackathon that focused on providing support to various foundations. It was very fun and motivating to be working with such exceptional people. The results of this session were very good projects and lots of fun. I went to sleep with the satisfaction of knowing that I did something to help!
What’s one thing you learned from attending Scholars’ Retreat?
Fernando
: One of the biggest takeaways for me was realizing how much Google motivates you to think big. The engineers and interns that we met were pushing code that affected millions, even billions of users. You really have to solve big problems and that means coming up with smart solutions. It also means that your users have different languages and cultural backgrounds, so you also have to have a global mindset.
Daniel:
What I took away from this experience is this -- if you love something, do it passionately! Everything else will come on its own.
María:
I would like to share a final thought that came to my mind in a moment at 24 Hours of Good when my group and I were in silence coding in our laptops trying to solve an apparently “impossible problem” just a few hours before deadline. At that silent moment the only thing you could hear was laughter from fellow scholars. That means “zero stress” — people were enjoying themselves and having fun. Indeed, our group was relaxed despite having to solve a lot of things in such little time. We were happy, united and motivated, knowing that we could do anything we wanted, we had everything we needed: it was just up to us.
To learn more about opportunities at Google for students in Latin America, visit google.com/students/latam.
Posted by Jessica Safir, Tech University Programs
========================================
Los académicos de Latinoamérica reflexionan sobre sus experiencias en el Encuentro de Google Académico
Cada verano, somos anfitriones de un Encuentro de Académicos en el que se invita a los becarios de Google a una de nuestras oficinas para celebrar sus logros, interactuar con otros académicos y participar en presentaciones realizadas por los ingenieros de Google. Además de invitar a los académicos de universidades de los EE. UU. y Canadá, este año también invitamos a nuestros becarios de Latinoamérica. Hablamos con tres de ellos para que puedan compartir sus experiencias.
¡Gracias por estar con nosotros! ¿Desean presentarse?
Daniel
: Mi nombre es Daniel y estudio ingeniería en informática en la Universidad de Santiago, en Chile.
María
: Soy María y estudio ingeniería del software en el Instituto Tecnológico de Buenos Aires, en Argentina.
Fernando
: Soy Fernando y estudio ingeniería de sistemas y computación en la Universidad de los Andes, en Colombia.
¿Por qué no nos cuentan un poco sobre el Encuentro de Académicos de Latinoamérica? ¿Cómo fue?
Fernando
: Antes del Encuentro de Académicos de Google en la Ciudad de Nueva York, invitaron a los académicos de Latinoamérica a una “mini cumbre”. Había 13 estudiantes de Chile, Colombia y Argentina y, debo decir, fue una gran experiencia en humildad. Conocí a fundadores de emprendimientos, hackers, músicos, ex jugadores profesionales de fútbol y habilidosos ingenieros que escriben increíbles programas.
María
: Comenzamos el día desayunando y, luego, participamos de una búsqueda del tesoro por el centro de la ciudad, resolviendo acertijos en equipos y visitando lugares como el Rockefeller Center, la Catedral de St. Patrick y el Central Park.
Daniel
: Luego hicimos un recorrido por la oficina de Google de NYC. Fue realmente espectacular poder ver en persona que todo lo que se dice sobre la “metodología de trabajo de Google” es cierto: la atmósfera es relajada, hay comida gratis en todos lados y el espacio de oficina está distribuido en forma muy ingeniosa. Muchos de nosotros dijimos: “¡Saben exáctamente cómo mantener felices a los desarrolladores!”. Además del recorrido por la oficina, la mini cumbre incluyó sesiones sobre cómo mejorar nuestros currículum y un panel de carreras con ingenieros y pasantes de Google que fue increíblemente motivador. Hablaron sobre el trabajo y el crecimiento profesional y personal que experimentaron. Fue excelente escuchar de su boca lo que hicieron y cómo llegaron a Google.
¿Cómo fue su experiencia una vez que comenzó oficialmente el Encuentro de Académicos?
Daniel:
Después de la mini cumbre, comenzó oficialmente el Encuentro de Académicos de Google. ¡Estábamos con todos los becarios de Google de Norteamérica! Dejamos de lado el idioma español y comenzamos a hablar en inglés.
Maria
: El orador de bienvenida, Alfred Spector, nos dio un consejo sincero sobre cómo enfrentar nuestras carreras. Más adelante, tomamos una “Prueba de personalidad de verdaderos colores” que nos ayudó a conocernos mejor, a ser conscientes de nuestras fortalezas y debilidades. Luego, nos reunimos con más académicos del mismo color, nos reímos de nuestras debilidades y nos dimos cuenta de que podíamos complementarlas con las habilidades de otras personas.
¡Y eso solo fue el primer día! ¿Qué actividades realizaron en el segundo día?
María:
El segundo día comenzó con una charla dada por un Googler sobre cómo Google puede luchar contra problemas reales de la sociedad, como el tráfico de personas. Siempre me preocuparon este tipo de asuntos, así que cuando comenzó la charla no pude más que maravillarme ante el mundo que se abrió ante mis ojos en menos de una hora. Me sorprendió la diversidad de Google y como eso ayuda a ver cosas que no podríamos detectar en otros contextos, como dijo unas horas más tarde un Googler del panel de carreras.
Daniel:
Una de las actividades que más disfruté el segundo día fue el taller de entrevistas técnicas. Simulamos una entrevista técnica real en la que nos dividimos en grupos de cuatro o cinco personas acompañadas por un Googler. Trabajamos en pizarras resolviendo problemas algorítmicos típicos de las entrevistas. Hicimos lo mejor que pudimos para encontrar una solución aceptable y aprendimos mucho acerca de qué buscan los ingenieros cuando entrevistan a candidatos.
Pero eso no fue todo, ¿cierto?
Daniel:
¡No! El viernes participamos en “24 Hours of Good”, un hackatón que se enfoca en proporcionar soporte para varias fundaciones. Fue muy divertido y motivador trabajar con personas tan excepcionales. Como resultado de esta sesión generamos muy buenos proyectos y nos divertimos mucho. ¡Me fui a acostar con la satisfacción de saber que hice algo para ayudar!
Si pudieran elegir una cosa para contarnos que hayan aprendido en el Encuentro de Académicos, ¿cuál sería?
Fernando
: Una de las mejores cosas, para mí, fue darme cuenta de cuánto te motiva Google a pensar en grande. Los ingenieros y pasantes que conocimos estaban creando códigos que afectan a millones, miles de millones de personas. Uno realmente tiene que resolver problemas grandes, y eso significa encontrar soluciones ingeniosas. También significa que los usuarios utilizan diferentes idiomas y provienen de diferentes trasfondos culturales, así que uno debe tener una mentalidad global.
Daniel:
Lo que aprendí de esta experiencia es que si amas algo, debes hacerlo con pasión. El resto llegará solo.
María:
Me gustaría compartir una reflexión final que se cruzó por mi mente durante “24 Hours of Good”, cuando mi grupo y yo estábamos en silencio, creando códigos en nuestras laptops e intentando resolver problemas aparentemente “imposibles” solo unas horas antes del plazo final. En ese momento de silencio, lo único que se podía escuchar eran las risas de otros académicos. Eso significa “cero estrés”, las personas lo estaban disfrutando y se divertían. De hecho, nuestro grupo estaba relajado a pesar de tener que resolver muchas cosas en tan poco tiempo. Estábamos felices, unidos y motivados sabiendo que podíamos hacer lo que quisiéramos, teníamos todo lo necesario: solo dependía de nosotros.
Para obtener más información sobre las oportunidades que Google ofrece a estudiantes de Latinoamérica, visita google.com/students/latam.
Publicado por Jessica Safir, Tech University Programs
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