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Winner Spotlight: “Pay it Forward” Contest Winners Visit Google

July 12, 2016

In honor of Black History Month, we launched our third annual “Pay It Forward” contest to find and recognize undergraduate and MBA students positively impacting their local Black communities. After reviewing an incredible range of submissions from undergraduates and business school students, we’re pleased to announce our winners:
Undergraduate winners:

Ariana Brazier (2013 BOLD Immersion participant) is the former President of the Spelman College section of the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW). This summer, Ariana will be conducting research on homelessness before starting a Ph.D. program at the University of Pittsburgh.

Rachel McKenzie is the former Vice President of the Spelman College section of NCNW. This summer, Rachel will be joining Teach for America.

MBA winners:

Stephen Worthy is the former co-President of Detroit Revitalization & Business Initiative (Detroit R&B) at the Ross School of Business. This summer, Steve will begin working with J.P. Morgan in New York with hopes of returning to Detroit to continue his commitment to his hometown.

Benjamin Stickel is the former co-President of Detroit R&B. He will be returning to Detroit to continue his impact within his community while working at the Boston Consulting Group.

Both teams were awarded an all-expense paid trip to Google’s Headquarters and here’s a photo recap of their experience:

They had a front row seat to experience Google’s campus and culture.

They connected with Googlers through coffee chats, resume workshops with Google recruiters and as they walked around campus.

They had an inside look at Google’s products.

“It was really cool to see that innovative side of Google that you always hear about” commented Ben Stickel (pictured far left) after an inside look at Google Cardboard virtual reality.

They presented their work to Googlers.

Pictured below: Steve Worthy and Benjamin Stickel speaking about their work with the Detroit Revitalization & Business Initiative. Together, they pioneered Minds of Business (MoB), a mentorship program that mobilizes MBAs to serve as mentors to Detroit youth. To date, they have partnered with two Detroit public schools and covered topics such as Accounting, Entrepreneurship, and Marketing.

They inspired Googlers to step out of their comfort zones and continue striving to be agents of change in their communities.

Pictured below: Ariana and Rachel leading an ice-breaker used by the Spelman College section of the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW). Ariana and Rachel, during their tenure as President and Vice President, respectively, have placed great emphasis on their general body meetings because of the opportunities that they provide for “members to fellowship and empower themselves through constructive and reflective activities.”

Join us in congratulating NCNW, R&B and all the incredible student organizations that entered the Pay it Forward contest. Please consider entering the contest next February!

We have your ticket to travel back in time to Google Games 2016!

July 7, 2016

We just wrapped up five weeks of epic adventure during Google Games, and this is your golden ticket to experience all the fun! Google Games is an annual event that allows us to bring Google’s culture, a lot of entertainment, and some friendly competition to computer science students across North America. This year, the games were hosted in 14 different cities, and we were introduced to nearly 2,000 challenge-seeking undergraduate students from 60 different universities.

From the patio on Google’s campus in Sunnyvale to a rooftop in Chicago, there were 17 events in 14 different cities across North America.

Participants, encouraged to dress up in costume, encountered different challenges including Trivia, Building, Puzzles, Word Association and Coding. We awarded prizes to the top three teams at each location who had the most points at the end of the day. The Spirit Award was presented to the teams with a contagious energy or who got creative with this year’s theme - time travel!

Teams went head to head competing in five different challenge categories, and the winners were able to take home some well deserved Google SWAG.

Team “Liveware Problem” in Waterloo was the only team to solve every single coding question - 18 problems in 75 minutes. In Cambridge, team “Benevolent Bodacious Barbarians Plus Plus” finished the puzzle challenge with a top score across all locations. A huge congratulations to all the teams who were crowned the winners at each site.

Giant Hand from the University of Texas at Austin

); DROP TABLE teams; -- from Princeton University

Liveware Problem from the University Of Waterloo

We're Bad At This from Carnegie Mellon University

UNO CS Squad from the University Of New Orleans

Thyme Lords from New York University

Volcano Volcanoes from the University Of Washington, Seattle

Chrono Crew from the University Of Maryland College Park

Shuai's Guys from Northwestern University Illinois

Jumping Jalapeños from Georgia Institute Of Technology

nibbles ᕕ( ՞ ᗜ ՞ )ᕗ from Stanford University

EPOCH FAIL from the Massachusetts Institute Of Technology (MIT)

Team Avocado from San Jose State University

Tyrannosaurus Rekt from WPI Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Doctor Poo from the California Institute Of Technology

Ultimate Norf from Harvey Mudd College

Team a4c1bed85s0365c from the University Of British Columbia

The Building challenge at Google Games involved some creative thinking and many straws. Add Google Students to your circles on Google+ to learn more about next year’s competition. We hope to see you there and uncover your passion for computer science.

Congratulations to the recipients of the 2016 Google Europe Scholarship for Students with Disabilities

June 20, 2016

As part of Google's ongoing commitment to advancing computing and technology, we are pleased to provide scholarships to encourage students to excel in their studies and become active role models and leaders. In partnership with EmployAbility, we are excited to announce this year’s recipients of The Google Europe Scholarship for Students with Disabilities.

Please join us in congratulating the following recipients, along with the universities they attend:

Alyssa Milburn, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Netherlands
Tim Dettmers, University of Oxford, United Kingdom
Cristina Isabel Font, Polytechnic University of Valencia, Spain
Massimo Giordano, University of Trento, Italy
Hannah Evan, University of Birmingham, United Kingdom
Jakub Tomek, Imperial College London, United Kingdom
Jens Heuschkel, TU Darmstadt, Germany
Dmitri Katz, Open University, Israel
Trung Hieu Nguyen, Aalto University, Finland

Each scholar will receive 7,000 Euros to support their studies for the 2016/2017 academic year. All scholars have been selected based on their passion for Computer Science, academic achievement, leadership, and technical accomplishments.

Applications for the 2017 Google Europe Scholarship for Students with Disabilities will open in October. Follow our updates on this blog for information about when applications will open.

Posted by Maya Tudor, EMEA Diversity Scholarships Program Manager

Presenting our 2016 Google scholarship recipients!

June 16, 2016

Here at Google, we strive to create meaningful connections with rising computer science talent by creating programs that engage students from around the world. While these individuals come from different backgrounds and experiences, many have faced the challenge of being underrepresented in the tech industry. We’re working to change that.
As part of our initiatives focused on expanding diversity, Google offers scholarships that support and encourage underrepresented students to pursue careers in computer science and become part of the next generation of tech leaders. We recently selected recipients from the following scholarship programs:

Google Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship for women in technology (US, Canada, and Europe, Middle East & Africa)

Generation Google Scholarship for high school and university students from underrepresented backgrounds in computer science.

Google Lime Scholarship for students with disabilities.

Google Student Veterans of America (SVA) Scholarship for student veterans.

We’re excited to announce the 2016 recipients of these scholarships, and congratulate them for their hard work and dedication. These students will join a community of Google scholars who are actively changing the diversity status quo in the tech industry. We can’t wait to see what the future holds for these exceptional students!
Stay tuned for our announcement of the Google Europe Scholarship for Students with Disabilities and Google Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship for Asia Pacific.

Writing the best business report for the AdMob Student App Challenge

June 16, 2016

With less than two weeks left in the AdMob Student App Challenge, you should now be working on your business reports. In order to qualify, your team must submit a business report along with your app so please review the guidelines. Here are some tips to help you write your business report:

The presentation and layout are easy - just follow the template on the AdMob website, and provide logical and cohesive explanations on each step of your decision-making process.

Give examples along the way. This does not necessarily mean flashy and colorful graphics, but a clear marketing strategy and an examples of your app’s performance will go a long way with the panel.

Don’t worry about having the report translated to English. Submit the business report in the language you are most comfortable with.

It’s important to make sure your business report demonstrates a sound strategy behind the choices made when integrating AdMob into the app.

With your marketing strategy, talk about how you have already marketed your app, and what you’re doing to get the word out about your app and to maximize downloads.

While time is running short, continue to promote your app, monitor feedback, and get your business report wrapped up. The submission deadline is June 28, 2016 by 5:00PM PST, and this includes both your mobile app and business report. As always, follow us on AdMob G+ and Twitter for updates and keep an update on #AdMobSAC16 too, for any last-minute posts.
Posted by Jeff MinerAdMob Student App Challenge Team

Looking to the last month of the AdMob Student App Challenge

June 6, 2016

There is now a month left before the final submission date for the AdMob Student App Challenge. At this point in the contest, your team should have completed the design of your app, and it should be live on the Google Play Store. For the remainder of the contest, we recommend that your team focus on the following:

Monitor user feedback so that you can make improvements as the app gets the feedback. Your app should be high quality, and part of that is improving it based on user suggestions.

Remember to submit your app and AdMob account ID to AdMob so we know you’ve built it.

Promote your app. Think about creative ways to do it. Next week, look for a post on promotional suggestions that are simple and effective.

Now is the time to start readying your business report, which is due on June 28, 2016 by 5:00PM PST through this link. The Challenge website already has a recommended template on it, and we will be sending out some pointers on having the best possible project soon.

Remember, your project will be reviewed by a panel of app experts from Google, so your business report will need to be thorough and of professional-level quality.

Continue to follow us on AdMob G+ and Twitter for updates on the last month of the Challenge and keep an update on #AdMobSAC16 too, for any last-minute posts.

Posted by Jeff Miner

AdMob Student App Challenge Team

Google Travel Grant Application: 2016 Grace Hopper Conference UPDATE

June 2, 2016

***UPDATE***
The deadline has been extended to July 17, 2016

As part of Google's ongoing commitment to increase the number of women in technology, we are excited to offer travel grants to the 2016 Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing conference taking place in Houston, Texas from October 19 - 21, 2016. Once again, this year’s conference will offer incredible opportunities for mentoring, networking and career development.
University students and industry professionals in the US and Canada who are excelling in technology and passionate about supporting women in tech can apply for a travel grant to attend the 2016 Grace Hopper conference.
Sponsorship includes:

Conference registration

Round trip flight to Houston, TX (from within the US or Canada)

$75 USD reimbursement for miscellaneous travel costs

Arranged hotel accommodations from October 18-22

A fun event with your travel grant recipients on one of the evenings of the conference!

Please apply here by Sunday, July 17, 2016. The Grace Hopper Travel Sponsorship winners will be announced by July 27th. For questions, please email ghctravelgrant@google.com.

Why Math Majors Came to Google to Learn About Careers in Software Engineering

April 13, 2016

Did you know that you don’t have to be a computer science major to be a software engineer at Google? It’s true! Just a few weeks ago, Google hosted its first-ever Math Summit in the New York City office to encourage students majoring in subjects other than computer science that they, too, can -- and should! -- apply for software engineering internships and full-time roles at Google. Students from 17 colleges came to Google for a day of technical talks, a panel discussion featuring Googlers with math backgrounds, an interview workshop and networking. If you’re not studying computer science, but are interested in building technology that makes a meaningful impact on the lives of people all across the world, then read on to learn what you’ll need to know.
IMG_4221 (1).jpg

A panel at Google’s first-ever Math Summit, held in New York City.
I don’t have to be a CS major to work at Google? We want to take this opportunity to do a little myth-busting: You *do not* have to be a CS major to have a career as a software engineer here at Google. Studying physics? Electrical engineering? Theoretical math? We have Googlers from all of these backgrounds! You just have to have the CS fundamentals, which you’ll need in order to do well in the technical interviews (more on this later), and the passion to work in teams to solve some of technology’s toughest questions. If you can develop your coding skills, then software engineering might just be your next adventure.
What do I need to know? You might be thinking, “But I’m so behind! How will I learn everything I need to know for interviews before I graduate?” We have good news: you don’t have to know everything. When you’re preparing for technical interviews, it’s most important to have a firm understanding of data structures and algorithms, which is typically the next course taken after the Intro to Programming course offered by many colleges and universities. If you’re still in school, take advantage of the courses offered there. And be sure sure to check out our Technical Development Guide (g.co/techdevguide).
What are interviewers looking for? Interviewers will want to see that you are able to write functional code in at least one language really well (e.g., Java, Python, C++, etc.). Make it your priority to know the common constructs and idioms in your language of choice. Once you have that down, ask yourself if you could explain the real world performance of the code you write. Do you know the run time? Can you think of how you’d change your code if you had to make certain trade-offs? Have you thought about scalability? What about different edge cases? Make it a habit of asking yourself these questions and testing your code, and you’ll be in great shape.
That’s it? Mostly, yes! The next steps are to practice, practice, and practice. Buddy up with a friend and practice writing code on white boards. Talk out loud as you go through each problem to simulate the interview. Remember, it's okay to admit what you do not know. You won’t be penalized for this! Interviewers have been in your position before, and they will tell you that most of what they do now was learned on the job -- not from textbooks or computer science courses.
Get in touch with us! Interested in learning more? Let us know here! And check out google.com/students for all internship and full-time opportunities at Google.
We hope to hear from you! Alec & Grace, from the University Programs team

Alec taking selfies while waiting for students to arrive at the Math Summit.

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