How to get a tech internship

Field-tested job-hunting tips for computer science students.

Also check out my post on getting started with computer science for college students.

Google headquarters

I probably don’t need to convince you that working at tech companies is really attractive. You can work with startups on meteoric rises and world-famous tech giants, all while surrounded by ping-pong tables and unlimited snacks. You can build apps that your friends use and products that make the world a better place.

There’s just one problem: how do you get a tech internship in the first place?

Soma zaidi ...

CS50: What Next?

Kumbuka: this post is aimed mostly at Harvard students.

CS50 logo

So you took Harvard’s introductory computer science class, CS50. (Maybe you were a regular at my section or met me at office hours.) You learned a lot, you enjoyed it, and you want to continue exploring computer science. Maybe you want to concentrate in CS, get a minor, get an internship at a tech company, or better understand how computers are going to take over the world.

But CS is a huge field, and with just one course under your belt, it’s difficult to really break into it.

So what next?

Soma zaidi ...

My Khan Academy Internship, Majira '15

Huu majira ya joto, Mimi kushoto ya mipaka ya kirafiki ya Cambridge na anasafiri nje West kwa mgomo ni tajiri Intern kama mhandisi wa programu katika Khan Academy. Na kwamba si kabisa kufanya hivyo haki: ilikuwa ni uzoefu kabisa kuleta mabadiliko.

Salman Khan of Khan Academy
Na kutisha Sal Khan, mwanzilishi wa Khan Academy

Miradi ya kutisha

Mimi ilikua tani kama mhandisi wa programu kwa kushirikiana na mshauri wangu juu ya miradi hiyo baridi kama:
– Kujenga SEO'd kurasa kutua kwa video wetu
– Kujenga kipengele kutuma barua pepe notisi watumiaji wakati wowote maswali yao juu ya video wetu kupata akajibu, kazi kwa karibu na designer
– Kufuatilia chini na fixing mende katika yetu video mchezaji mpya

Soma zaidi ...

Kuchapisha, kama, na kupata: kujenga mazingira ya wazi na curated

Mazingira na viumbe hai wengi kama vile maduka ya programu ni aidha wazi au curated. Lakini kwa nini hawawezi tuna wote? Vizuri, tunaweza — wote unahitaji ni verbs tatu: kuchapisha, kupata, na kama. Kwamba huenda kwa ajili ya teknolojia na kitu kingine chochote.

Kawaida kuna chaguzi mbili wakati unataka kuchapisha programu: kuchapisha kitu kama iOS App Store (ambapo watu watakuwa kupata programu yako, lakini Apple reviewers anaweza kukataa kuwasilisha yako) au tu kuiweka kwenye tovuti yako (ambapo ni rahisi kuchapisha, lakini hakuna mtu dhamana utaona hilo.) Not the greatest set of options.

Isn’t there a way to combine the strengths of both of these to make for the best possible experience for both publishers and consumers? I think there is. It’s called an open and curated ecosystem. Let’s take a look at:

  • What open na curated ecosystems are
  • Examples of open and curated ecosystems
  • What you need to make an open and curated ecosystem
  • Examples of these ecosystems beyond just technology

and see if we can discover something about the power of crowdsourcing, innovation, and the three verbs kuchapisha, kupata, na kama.

Curated vs. open ecosystems

The iOS App Store and open internet, among others, are app ecosystems — places where apps can be published and found. And I think the big factors that differentiate one ecosystem from another are whether the ecosystem is open, where anyone can publish apps and whether it is curated, where the best apps rise to the top and users are assured quality apps. That’s the major difference between the iOS store and the internet at large, which I mentioned earlier.

Let’s look at examples of curated and open ecosystems and what differentiates them.

Soma zaidi ...

5 mchango mkubwa sana bure programu tija kwa ajili ya chuo

miaka michache iliyopita niliandika kuhusu programu muhimu kwa ajili ya shule ya sekondari — lakini sasa chuo ni hapa, na huleta nzima mwezi seti ya mahitaji. Tangu Mimi aliwasili katika Harvard, Nimepata kufanya zaidi, na programu yangu alikuwa na kufanya zaidi pia.

Hizi programu mpya haja ya kukimbia kwenye majukwaa yote (Windows, Mac, Android, iOS), kusawazisha seamlessly kati yao, na msaada kwangu kuweka yangu data kupangwa. Wanapaswa kuwa versatile, robust, na rahisi kutumia. Na wao kuwa bure.

With that in mind, here are the five apps that I’ve relied on most at Harvard and that I recommend to anyone in college or anywhere else in life. They’re ranked in order of usefulness.

Evernote, Wunderlist, Mailbox, Sunrise, Pocket
5 bure, essential apps for college: Evernote, Wunderlist, Mailbox, Sunrise, and Pocket.
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Self-expression on the internet: a hybrid approach?

The internet should help you express yourself easily and ensure you have control over the content and quality of your writings. But is that possible?

The internet has always been called the great platform for self-expression. The claim goes that you no longer need to be talented and lucky enough to get your work into a book or newspaper or magazine; anyone can publish anything to the internet, and if it’s good enough, it can get found.

It’s definitely true that the cost of self-expression has gone down with the internet, so people are much more likely and able to use it to publish their ideas. (The idea of economic cost, or amount of effort it takes to do something, is a very powerful one, kwa njia. When it gets easier to do something, that thing explodes in popularity. It’s pretty self-evident, but it’s a powerful way of looking at things like the rise of self-expression with the internet.)

Kuna two main ways of publishing content online:

  • Publishing independently (making your own platform)
  • Using someone else’s platform (hosted publishing)

Both of these fall short of the goal of allowing for easy self-publishing. Nadhani, ingawa, kwamba there’s room for a hybrid that would bring the best of both.

Soma zaidi ...

On “social” media, weak ties, and Snapchat stories

How social media is designed to help you build relationships with acquaintances, and why Snapchat (ndiyo, that Snapchat) is the most effective social media platform

It was late enough that I’d stopped thinking for the night, so I proudly proclaimed to my nearby friends that I was getting a Snapchat account. It had always struck me as a bit vapid and narcissistic – you’re swapping carefully-chosen selfies with others to try and win favor – but I figured I’d give it a go.

But I quickly learned that Snapchat, like any other social media platform, gives rise to a number of use cases that the creators probably never intended. (Kwa mfano, Twitter probably never foresaw that it would contribute to the Egyptian Revolution of 2011.) What I saw was this: Snapchat and other social media platforms are surprisingly effective ways to grow and maintain your network of weak ties (acquaintances) by reducing the costs of communication and increasing the number of “hooks,” or chances to strike up conversation, you have. All social media can do this, but Snapchat, by its very nature, is the king of this.

Soma zaidi ...