Cisco

Business Analyst Intern

June 2018 • San Jose, CA

What I liked

A lot of responsibility Great experience Cross functional GPO resource

What I wish was different

Not creative

Advice

Network

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Project Manager Intern

May 2016 - January 2018 • San Jose, CA

What I liked

There was a lot of opportunity to learn and grow, I was very lucky to have a manager who gave me a great deal of responsibility and allowed me to be involved in all aspects of the projects I was exposed to. This exposure enabled me to learn a lot about how large projects are managed throughout the entire project lifecycle from inception all the way through to project closure. Overall the PM Intern role is very diversified and gives you a huge about of I would say that this is the biggest benefit to working as a PM at Cisco Key Takeaways (Positive): - Lots of opportunity to learn about project management - Lots of exposure to different roles, departments and areas of the company - Flexible environment with work from home opportunities - Path to a full-time offer

What I wish was different

The pay at Cisco is less competitive than other large Fortune 500 companies in the Bay Area, but what you lose in compensation you make up for in flexibility. Overall I would say that being an intern at Cisco is great, but be warned that many people here are set in their ways and are not often open to feedback (especially from interns) and do not always welcome new ways of doing things. Key Takeaways (Negative): - Compensation is on the lower side - You work with a lot of contractors (this makes certain aspects of the job difficult) - Team/Team mates are all in their 40’s/50’s so this makes socializing with coworkers a little more difficult - Change / new ways of doing things is not always welcomed

Advice

I would say the biggest piece of advice I could share would be to get as much exposure as humanly possible to all the parts/pieces of projects you are involved with (from design, requirements gathering, budget + headcount planning, all the way to customer feedback and incorporation). This exposure will not only teach you a lot about how projects are managed but also enable you to explore various different roles and responsibilities that exist throughout your respective department and the company as a whole. This exposure ultimately gave me invaluable perspective and enabled me to learn what I was most passionate about and where my strengths lay.

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Software Engineer

July 2018 • San Jose, CA

What I liked

Flexibility, good benefits, ability to do interesting work

What I wish was different

Better mentorship from senior engineers

Advice

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Technical Leader

January 2016 - October 2017 • Austin, TX

What I liked

This position covered several technologies and products: on premises/cloud/services, security/access/development/support. Required continuous self paced learning of products and technologies. Required verification, integration and testing of several products in a lab environment. Challenging environment encompassing 11 different products and product groups

What I wish was different

Clearer lines of responsibility (and management) between engineering and quality assurance organizations. Needed consistent training across all teams for secure agile software development processes.

Advice

Be sure to get a formal written professional development plan, including career path with clear benchmarks for promotions and raises and responsibilities.

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Software Engineer

January 2017 • San Jose, CA

What I liked

The flexibility of work and Cisco's focus on improving skills on their employees. Competitive compensation, Great benefits.

What I wish was different

Nothing I can think of. Cisco is a great place to start your career

Advice

Be open to learning new things. Maintain effective working relations with your coworkers and especially your manager.

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Software Engineer

November 2018 • San Jose, CA

What I liked

Job profile and Company

What I wish was different

N/A

Advice

Plan ahead and get required skills and experience for the job you apply

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Marketing Specialist Intern

June - August 2018 • Morrisville, NC

What I liked

The company, the people, the work and the culture!

What I wish was different

Nothing.

Advice

Don't be scared to do something because it's in a location that's not NYC or Boston. I made amazing friends this summer and you will too!

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Computer Network Engineering Intern

May - August 2018 • Morrisville, NC

What I liked

Love the experience, great culture, people are eager to answer questions and help in anyway they can, campus was great and had fun activities.

What I wish was different

Wish I knew more about networking and how important is to connect with people within your workforce.

Advice

Get to know people and absorb all the information you can while you’re there.

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Software Engineering Intern

June - August 2018 • San Jose, CA

What I liked

First time in CA, my team gave me an enjoyable experience. Met awesome friends/interns who worked there.

What I wish was different

Advice

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Financial Analyst Intern

June - August 2018 • San Jose, CA

What I liked

The work i was doing at Cisco was hand on material that would be used even after i finished the internship. This was by far the best part about the internship because i knew what i was working on wasn't busy work just handed off to the intern. I created excel dashboards for my manager that she now used to help her forecast the sales and services sales for the future quarters.

What I wish was different

I wish i had spent a little more time talking to other people within the company. Now that i have accepted the return offer, i would love to have a record of people i met with in order to get in contact with them again come my start date this August.

Advice

Give internships everything you have. You will only get out what you put in. Effort shows for internships and i believe my efforts are what allowed me to receive a return offer.

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Software Engineering Intern

June - September 2018 • San Jose, CA

What I liked

I liked how much I learned over the summer.

What I wish was different

If my team were a little more talkative and open.

Advice

Don’t be afraid to ask questions, people are almost always willing to help.

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Frontend Software Engineer

June - August 2018 • Raleigh, NC

What I liked

- company culture - team dynamic - mentors and managers that acted like mentors - everyone at the end of my internship really wanted to help me and helped me get a job offer and still work to help me through senior year today

What I wish was different

- more time with my team and more help learning - location

Advice

- build the network and mentorships you can at Cisco ... everyone wants to help you and they love what they are doing and the company they work for

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Financial Analyst Intern

June - August 2018 • Raleigh, NC

What I liked

Meaningful work, supportive environment, vast networking opportunities, and the sense of being taken care of as employees.

What I wish was different

Teams we were instructed to collaborate with on our projects didn’t have the time to help us because other projects were being prioritized. It was understandable but still made completing the project challenging.

Advice

Internship experiences are generally as good as you make them. Seek out additional responsibilities, be willing to lend advice/help to your team, don’t be afraid to speak up, and set up your own meetings to network and determine if you truly see yourself in that career path at that company.

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Project Manager

June 2018 • San Jose, CA

What I liked

What I wish was different

Advice

Situation management is the key to doing well in this position. Time management is another key.

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Software Engineer Intern

June - September 2018 • Milpitas, CA

What I liked

My internship revolved around doing work that is relevant to the field of computer science that I was interested in. In addition, there is a lot of other like-minded people like me interested in data science.

What I wish was different

I wish most of my team was in the same area as me, but that wasn't a big deal. In addition, a greater focus on interns.

Advice

Personal projects can get you your food in the door. In addition, networking can be your best friend. The only way I could have gotten this opportunity is through a friend I met in class.

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UI Developer

November 2018 • San Jose, CA

What I liked

What I wish was different

Advice

I would like to suggest everyone to decide your interest first and based on that only prepare for your interviews. It will be helpful to understand what to prepare exactly and what do you want for your next job. Do not run for all the open opportunities.

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Global planning Intern

June - August 2018 • San Jose, CA

What I liked

It’s very hands on and I had the wonderful opportunity to work with an amazing team that knew their jobs very well and were willing to help at all stages

What I wish was different

I wish the schedule was a little more consistent when it came to projects we were given. I found myself without anything to do some days and completely swamped other days.

Advice

Take this opportunity to really understand the work culture and take the time to learn. Don’t worry about performing amazing at all turns and certainly don’t turn down any opportunities you might get to learn anything new

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Software Developer

October 2018 • San Jose, CA

What I liked

I like how friendly everyone is. Even if you're new, everyone helps you, but you have to speak up. I like the fact that there are quiet rooms to work in because I do my work better in separate rooms. No one has issues if you use them. There is free coffee and the service people are so kind and welcoming. I recommend getting to know them and talk to them.

What I wish was different

More ease of communication because if you don't ask others, they'll forget that you exist and your work won't be noticed. There should be less pressure to show up physically to work when communicating online is easier, especially in this industry where telecommunications is a priority.

Advice

Communicate frequently. Keep asking people for help and make sure you know what you're doing. Even if you don't, just ask for help. Always make sure you're communicating with the team, regardless of whether you're confused or not because you need to make sure you're getting the work for the experience. Keep your online presence available as early in the morning as you can (i.e. logon to Jabber in the morning, even if you're still getting ready) so people know you're available to talk to if need be.

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