Entering the professional world as a Young Graduate Software Engineer at Twipe has been an exciting and transformative experience. In this post, I will share my insights and reflections on my life as a software developer at Twipe, highlighting the challenges, growth opportunities, and the incredible support I have received along the way. But first, a little introduction.
My name is Joanna Rostek, but everyone calls me Asia. After graduating with a master’s degree in computer science at the end of 2022, I started looking for a job abroad and stumbled upon Twipe. Although I now live and work in Belgium, like many of my colleagues, I’ve lived in several different countries – from Poland, where I’m from, to the Netherlands and France, where I studied during my Erasmus exchanges.
Twipe drew me in through posts like this one, made by the Young Graduates before me, who described the ownership and trust they were given from the moment they joined. Having done an internship in a large company during my studies, these statements surprised me – from mine and my friends’ experience as interns and juniors, you’re given a task and then you do it, over and over again, often not having a clue what exactly you’re working on. I can tell you now that this is not what awaits you at Twipe; you will grow in areas you never expected to, and you will be given projects where you’ll be involved from beginning to end.
Before joining the company, I was a typical student programmer – coded in python without much structure, error handling or unit testing (if it works – it works). I had a strong base knowledge but didn’t use it in practice. Imagine the shock of having to learn C#, a completely new language to me in the first two weeks of joining! Through trainings and lots of support from my team, I was soon contributing, and my work was being used by thousands of newspaper readers in several countries. I also saw my programming improve in quality thanks to joining the book club and discussing Clean Code.
You will grow in areas you never expected to, and you will be given projects where you’ll be involved from beginning to end.
Something else that really sets Twipe apart is its culture. We don’t just work together; we learn and have fun together as well. Thanks to my fellow Twipees I’ve improved my abysmal bowling skills, learned a bit of fencing with a two-handed sword, and lost my voice in a carpool karaoke. During a company retreat we call “Team Learning” we stayed in a castle, and we spent another company trip in glamping tents surrounded by alpacas and sheep.
On a more serious note, I’ve also learned to manage my time better, plan my work and keep stress at bay – all things I regret not knowing as a student. Twipe organized a session with an external company to aid us in these areas, but I’ve also received help in the form of chats with colleagues who gave me advice based on their personal experiences.
I hope this post already convinced you to join us. If you’re ambitious, never tired of learning and ideally have a sweet tooth, rest assured – you’ll fit right in. Don’t wait, just apply – you won’t regret it!
Would you also like to take part in our Young Graduate programme? Apply now!