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"If I'm doing something really intense, I forget how long I'm there.
If it gets dark outside....Ooops, it's time to go home!"
Computer software engineering technicians design and improve computer
software. "Software" means a set of programmed
instructions which make the computer work.
Technicians learn special coded languages which allow them to program
computers.
It took three years for Ngoc Giao Tran to finish the two-year Software Engineering Technolgy program, but only one year on the job to be promoted from technician to engineer. In the competitive world of computer software, this is a Cinderella story. While Cinderella got the Prince and all his boring relatives, Giao earned an opportunity to work so intensely that she forgets the time of day.
The Computer Software Engineering Technology program trains students to work in the hi-tech industry helping engineers develop and maintain software. Software is the set of instructions that tell a computer what to do. Without software, a computer can't do anything. Giao was hired by TSSI (Test Systems Stategies, Inc.) as a software quality assurance technician to test software to see if it works. Now she is finishing six months of on-the-job training to design software from scratch.
Giao's success involves two critical elements: her obvious talent and dedication, plus her employer's acknowledgement of and commitment to talented people.
The atmosphere at TSSI is relaxed, friendly and supportive. When Giao arrives each morning, she sits at her computer, sometimes not looking up for hours. The focus at TSSI is the work, and Giao loves her work.
After fits and starts trying to earn a college degree while moving around the country, Giao achieved her goal in Portland, picking the community college over the university because the community college would help her find a job in her field to help pay for school. Working in a well-paying, mentally stimulating job was the motivation that kept Giao going. The words of one professor stuck with her: "Get a degree, no matter what it's in!"
At the community college, Giao took advantage of the day care program for her children and relished the small class size and the personal attention she received. "One term my grades weren't very good. My instructor called me into his office and said, 'I'm kind of disappointed. This is not you.' And he asked me why."
Giao found the environment at the community college perfect for her training and TSSI the perfect company in which to thrive. "You're not working for time, you're working for your knowledge. The company makes use of what you know and what you can do for them, instead of just using your time."
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