The Life Of A Corgi At Coursera

A typical day in the Dog House

Hello world. My name is Stanley Fung and I am a student from the University of Waterloo. August 2015 marks the end of my second internship at Coursera and I felt compelled to write about the extraordinary journey I have had over the last year.

This was going to be my first time in the Bay Area and before I knew it, I was on a plane en route to the Golden State. Along with another Waterloo intern, Michelle, a grand total of 2 interns and 1 full time would lead the charge for the Coursera Android app from September 2014 to December 2014. We were given complete responsibility and ownership of new features and every week presented a new and exciting challenge. There was no difference between the responsibilities given to an intern and a full time. During my second internship with fellow Waterloo intern Mike, I got to learn iOS and even got the incredible opportunity to open source a project that I worked on during my previous internship.

However, the most memorable part of these internships was not the work, but the people I worked with. I really can’t say enough about how amazing the people and culture are at Coursera. Behind every humble smile and helping hand lies an intelligent, exceptional individual. The mobile team was known as the Corgi’s and we were all residents of the Dog House; a standard meeting room flipped into a place where ideas, laughter, and the clicking of a mechanical keyboard could be heard all the way from the first floor.

Mobile Team at the top of Mission Peak

Team outings included hikes and escape rooms and were always a blast. Apart from the futile attempts to beat my mentor at table tennis, the numerous musical jam sessions, and the spur of the moment bubble tea runs, I got to learn from some of the best engineers in the world. They were always willing to hear out my ideas and give advice and I can’t thank everyone enough for the amazing mentorship they have given me.

Every minute here has been unforgettable and Coursera and the Mobile Team have been like a second home to me. I have made so many incredible friends and memories and I am truly going to miss everyone.

Originally published at building.coursera.org on August 11, 2015.