Software Engineering Internship

My high school offers a program called the Young Professionals Academy (YPA), which provides students with the opportunity to participate in two internships. For my second internship, I spent four weeks at Outcomes, a tech company specializing in pharmacy-centered software. My primary mentors were Marcus Larger and Justin Holderby, but I also collaborated closely with several other individuals within and outside their team. This was an immensely valuable experience, allowing me to see how my existing skills and knowledge translate to software engineering in a business environment. Additionally, I gained insight into the business aspects of software development and the role of leadership.

Having already spent years writing code, my mentors were aware of my background. So, the focus of this internship was to gain exposure to aspects of software engineering that I wouldn’t see unless I was in a business environment. There's a significant difference between writing code individually / with a small team and working with a larger team of engineers spanning multiple teams. While I can’t include every detail, I will share the most notable takeaways.

Code At Scale

During my time with the team at Outcomes, they provided a high-level overview of the company's systems. I learned that everything is designed for load balancing and high availability, a stark contrast to the purpose of a personal project. I was informed that the active codebases had over 50 million lines of code. This gave me a better understanding of why a single company often employs so many engineers. Working in a corporate environment is, naturally, quite different from personal projects.

AGILE

As a for-profit company, Outcomes has become highly efficient with its time. My mentor provided an in-depth explanation of AGILE methodology for development, which I found fascinating. The core principle of AGILE is efficiency, and much of the development process is structured around it. He also took the time to explain the importance of breaking down projects into smaller, achievable, and measurable tasks. These tasks are assigned point values, and I gained an understanding of their relative weights:

• 1 Point: "We know how to fix this and can do so pretty quickly."
• 2 Points: "We have an idea of how to fix it, and we can get it done somewhat quickly."
• 3 Points: "This would likely take a decent amount of work / unsure how to do this."
• 5+ Points: "Massive undertaking, no idea where to start" (significant red flags).

My mentor also drew a diagram illustrating AGILE, which I have attempted to recreate below. It summarizes what I learned about the methodology.

leadership & Management

With over 500 employees at Outcomes, I observed the significant value provided by managers and executives. Their role allows engineers to focus on their work while another group orchestrates the project details and the overall direction of the company, including setting priorities, managing goals, and ensuring smooth operations.

Conclusion

The most significant takeaway from this internship was gaining first hand insight into how a tech company operates. This was my first opportunity to see my passion applied in a professional setting, and it only strengthened my desire to pursue software engineering. Realistically, I could enter the field directly after high school. But I can do more. And that is my intention.

I would like to thank Brad Pearson for connecting me with Outcomes, to Marcus and Justin for their direct mentorship during my time there, and to all the incredible individuals I had the privilege of speaking with. This experience has influenced my decisions post-high school and has reinforced my passion for software engineering.