Last Friday Amanda Misjuwar and Navaz Alani finished their internship at Crowdlinker. As Crowdlinkers’ first Software QA interns, Amanda and Navaz conducted research on Test Driven Development (TDD)/Behaviour Driven Development (BDD) as well as help structure the quality assurance process at Crowdlinker.

We took a little bit of time out of their busy schedules to reflect on their experience (and maybe provide a bit of guidance for future interns as well). Below are the questions we asked:

• Who are you and what are you studying?
• What drew you to interning at Crowdlinker?
• What were your first impressions of Crowdlinker?
• What did you work on at Crowdlinker?
• What was the most important lesson/skills you learned as an intern?
• What is something that surprised you while working at Crowdlinker?
• Do you have any shoutouts?
• What advice would you give yourself 4 months ago? What advice would you give to other University students looking to intern at companies like Crowdlinker?
• What is your next venture?

Who are you and what are you studying?

Amanda:

I’m Amanda and I’m going into my 2A term of Computer Science at the University of Waterloo.

Navaz:

My name is Navaz Alani and I’m heading into my 2A term at University of Waterloo. I am currently enrolled in the Faculty of Mathematics, studying Computational Mathematics.

What drew you to Crowdlinker?

Amanda:

I think that Crowdlinker’s emphasis on investing in people stood out to me when I was applying for jobs.

Navaz:

Initially, I looked through the website and visited some of the websites and other products that Crowdlinker had created.  I could immediately tell that the people at Crowdlinker have a strong commitment and dedication to quality.

What were your first impressions of Crowdlinker?

Amanda:

Very warm and friendly environment, very motivated and knowledgeable people.

Navaz:

Over the first few days, I realized that the team that CL (aka. Crowdlinker) had put together was a powerful, united one. Not just because of the skillset that it possessed as a team, but also because of the culture and notions of radical transparency.

What did you work on at Crowdlinker?

Amanda:

As the first batch of QA Analyst Interns, aside from conducting QA on Crowdlinker’s various projects, I also helped structure the quality assurance process at the company. This included researching different test automation frameworks and documenting the best practices for streamlining QA for different kinds of products. Products I was a part of included web apps, mobile apps, and marketing websites. They were for clients such as Omstars, Netsweeper, Freshbooks, League, and Sessionz.

Navaz:

Initially, I conducted research on Test Driven Development (TDD)/Behaviour Driven Development (BDD) and how a QA workflow can be established within the existing software development lifecycle (SDLC). Furthermore, I experimented with several test automation frameworks such as Cypress, Selenium, Appium and Detox to setup automated end-to-end testing for existing mobile (Sessionz) and web projects (Netsweeper & Omstars) that CL is working on. This would ultimately bring CL’s SDLC closer to BDD/TDD style.

What was the most important lesson/skills you learned?

‍Amanda:

Don’t be afraid to ask questions and be really open to learning a lot of new things in a short span of time. Also, since it was my first co-op term, I was introduced to the software development process and life cycle, as well as technology that I was completely unfamiliar with beforehand. The exposure to multiple types of projects helped me observe and learn the architecture/structure of how they are built, which is an experience that will serve me well in my future co-ops.

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Navaz:

Over the last 4 months, I remember learning a lot of new things. I came in not knowing much about anything that CL was working on (from a technical standpoint). That changed quickly because of the nature of the team. Help and guidance were always available and this gave me the confidence to actually start working on things which I may not have been as good as in the beginning. In a way, if feels like I’ve learned so much that the most important thing I’ve learned is how to learn.

What is something that surprised you while working at Crowdlinker?

Amanda:

I was surprised by how much effort everybody actually put into answering my questions and helping me learn. They actually cared for the interns’ learning!

Navaz:

The culture was definitely something that I could not get my mind around for the first few days. It didn’t feel like a traditional office and I think that culture is one of the most powerful assets that CL has to keep their team happy, united and productive.

Do you have any shoutouts?

Amanda:

Not specifically, but all the teams I worked with had amazing team dynamics and communication. Everyone is able to understand one another well and can adapt to the situation so a solution can always be found when there is an obstacle.

Navaz:

I could give a whole shoutout to the entire CL team for offering help & guidance at every step of the way. I never felt like I was alone and I thank the entire team for that.

What advice would you give yourself 4 months ago? What advice would you give to other University students looking to intern at companies like Crowdlinker?

Amanda:

I would say to come with an idea of what I want to learn and bring out of the internship. For example - what do I want to leave accomplishing and if there is anything I would want to learn specifically?

Navaz:

• Keep an open mind
• Don’t be afraid to try new things
• Don’t be afraid to ask questions
• Be curious
• Take advantage of all the members of the team - learn from them: they are a gold mine of knowledge and wisdom

What is your next venture?

Amanda:

Hopefully moving into a software or web developer position for my next co-op!

Navaz:

I’d like to move on to a software position which also has some kind of focus on mathematics. I’m a math major and I love math; I’d like it to be a deeper part of my work.

In conclusion, we would like to congratulate both Amanda Misjuwar and Navaz Alani (as well as the Waterloo Internship Program) for completing their Software QA internship at Crowdlinker. Their attention to detail and commitment to the company has set a very high bar for the future interns to come. You guys rock!

For more information about Crowdlinkers’ Internship Program, reach out to us directly!

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