Shreyas Chaturvedi fell in love with computer science at a young age. From the start, he enjoyed its creativity and the problem solving that came with it.
“Everything requires a different toolset. Overtime, you discover the best tools for the best things, and you get a variety of experiences,” Chaturvedi said. “What I’ve learned about myself is that I have the most fun when I’m thrown into an environment where I have no idea what I’m doing and I have to figure it out.”
When Chaturvedi started his internship with the Intercomp Company this summer, he found the creative environment he was looking for but got even more out of the experience thanks to the support he received from his teammates.
“Greg is one of the best mentors ever,” said Chaturvedi. “He gives me intentionality and does an amazing job by giving me all the details I need.”
Greg Thompson is the Software Engineering Manager at Intercomp. Based in Medina, Minnesota, the manufacturing company has become a worldwide leader in the production of weighing systems for the aerospace, auto, industrial, agricultural and military industries. Thompson and his team have hosted interns for years, but it was only recently that they started taking a more intentional approach to mentorship.
“I’ve learned that planning and prep is important,” Thompson said. “Be intentional. It makes it easier for students and gives them an on-ramp.”
Part of the team
Under Thompson’s guidance, Chaturvedi started his first week by familiarizing himself with the C# coding language. He started by applying it to sample projects, making sure he had the hang of it before moving on to bigger assignments.
After that it was on to the main event, creating a visual interface for the data they had gathered from one of their strip sensors.
“Getting to test the actual hardware using my own app was really cool,” said Chaturvedi. “When all the numbers line up, that was my highlight, cause that’s when you know it’s functioning and it’s making sense.”
During his time at Intercomp, Chaturvedi’s contributions really started to make an impact. Whether conducting research to help inform Thompson’s work, or identifying a programming bug that the others on the team hadn’t noticed, “The work he’s getting done is really helpful,” Thompson said proudly.
Value through creativity
Having concluded his internship in September, Chaturvedi was grateful for the “tremendous learning experience,” he received at Intercomp. As he looks toward the future after graduation, his career, he says, is open.
“I’m not sure what my career is going to look like, but I know that I want to create. That’s the main thing, and do what I can to provide value to the world.”
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