Getting The Best Out of My Internship Experience
As a final-year student, I wanted to make the most of my last semester break. So instead of hopping on and off planes and trajecting my savings to the great unknown, I decided to do something different. This time, I got the opportunity to learn how the flight system of an online travel platform works. Sounds pretty much exciting, if you come to think of it.
Hi there! I’m Sarah — and I used to be a Backend Engineer Intern at Pegipegi. I started interning at Pegipegi late 2021 as a regular intern. But I decided to extend my internship period and joined Pegipegi’s TRIP (Tech Rookie Internship Program) earlier this year for another 6 months. So, what makes TRIP so special? Compared to my time as a regular intern, during TRIP I got extensive training and mentoring from Pegipegi’s experts — not only about the technical stuffs, but also soft skills. I also got the chance to interact with other TRIP interns which makes the journey more enjoyable. The best part, TRIP interns got souvenirs during onboarding and our own medal along with a certificate upon TRIP completion (we call it the TRIP graduation day). Overall, my internship experience at Pegipegi has been delightful and I’ll tell you why with three easy reasons.
Getting out of comfort zone
First, I simply was given so many opportunities and avenues to learn loads of new things. From discovering new programming paradigms to trying out new tools, I challenged myself to expand my comfort zone in software engineering. Moreover, I got to take on actual projects. Although I was an intern, I was excited to contribute to building systems that Pegipegi’s customers use.
My task was implementing the new airport system. Pegipegi is currently undergoing a code migration process from PHP to Java microservices. As a result, it is necessary to create a new airport system using Java. However, due to the nature of microservices, the airport data will be used by more than one microservice. Hence my team is to design and implement the new architecture that will be used for this airport migration process so that the data on each microservice can eventually be consistent. By the time I write this article, some microservices for the airport migration project are already in production, and that’s something I find very exhilarating.
I was scared. The weight of this responsibility was out of this world, especially for an intern like me. However, the fear subsided once I realized that my seniors were super helpful. I have absorbed a lot of new knowledge from them, and with their help, I was able to execute the project nicely.
Opportunity for growth
Okay next up: personal growth. During my internship at Pegipegi, I forced myself out of my introverted shell. Well, I didn’t technically force myself out — the Pegipegi team did, and all for good reasons! During my time there, everyone got an equal chance to lead the meeting in our daily scrum, including the interns. On top of that, once I was asked to become the MC for the team’s engagement activity. It was nerve-wracking at the beginning. But I gradually increased my confidence, which is a good thing.
Positive work environment
Last, fun co-workers! Truth be told, I value being surrounded by supportive peers and a nurturing environment. Ever since the interview rounds, my gut told me that Pegipegi would be a fun workplace. Although I started off shy and scared of not being able to mingle with other team members, everyone on the team was so welcoming from day 1. It was easy to adapt and lessen my awkwardness around the team. Even these days, I feel excited to go to the office and chat with others. I also enjoyed the outings, especially this one time when we stayed overnight at a villa in Sentul. The team played games, cooked, exchanged gifts and laughed a lot. It was an enjoyable experience.
Overall, I have spent 8.5 months as an intern at Pegipegi. It may sound long, but for me, it feels like a blink of an eye. Throughout my time as an intern, I conquered many challenges, met many amazing people and had a wonderful time. This internship is only the beginning of my career journey; I’m looking forward to growing more as a person and as a software engineer.
