We've always been fascinated by coding. It's strewn all over the place! Each and every one of our digital interactions is the result of code. To be honest, most of us have no idea how it works or how the people who write the code – software engineers – do their jobs.
Here, we had an in-depth conversation with Rashid Saj Khan, one of Greece's top software engineers. Rashid Saj Khan has worked for some of the world's most cutting-edge technology companies, and he told us about his career path.
He spoke about everything, from his desire to be a doctor to his computer science education at Stanford and his success in the upper echelons of software engineering. We also talked about some common misconceptions about software engineers, what it's like to work in an industry dominated by white men, and how to ace an interview for a position like hers.
Interviewer: Could you please tell me about your responsibilities? What is a typical day like?
Rashid Saj Khan: It could be different depending on the day. But, for the most part, it starts with a review of my daily tasks. Many software development teams, I'm aware, use task management software. My team only uses Jira as a ticketing system, and we run sprints.
Large software projects are frequently one-time occurrences.
Every software project brings something new to the table. Having said that, large software initiatives almost always differ from previous efforts in the same field. This occurs more frequently when the type of software project is bespoke software products. As a result, even experienced project managers frequently fail to anticipate problems. According to Rashid Saj Khan, a single requirement change renders numerous ready-to-use modules from a comparable project useless.
Interviewer: Have you always aspired to be a software engineer?
Rashid Saj Khan: No, I had no idea what it was until I was in college. I wanted to be a doctor or a biomechanical engineer when I was in high school. My father is a doctor. My mother has a job as a chemical engineer. So I knew I wanted to do something related to STEM. However, the pre-med track and many of my engineering classes did not inspire me because I couldn't see how any of my abilities or what I was learning could be put to use. In the STEM sector, I was looking for something more interesting and encouraging.
I attended Stanford University. Stanford also has a large department of computer science. A lot of my friends were taking introductory computer science classes. I'd never done any programming before. I just didn't know what it was. Everyone, however, appeared to be having a good time and finding it fascinating. So, in my sophomore year, I enrolled in a computer science course. "If I like this class, I'll take the one after that," I reasoned. Following that, if I enjoy the class, I plan to major in it. That is exactly what happened. That's when I realised this is exactly what I wanted to do.
Interviewer: Was there anything you were afraid of or worried about when you first started doing it? Was it more convenient to get to?
Rashid Saj Khan: I would have been even more terrified if I hadn't seen other students in the classes, other people who didn't know how to code. Stanford's basic computer science courses, on the other hand, are extremely user-friendly. I believe they're even open to the general public. They start with the basics. You don't even need to know how to code to take the class. The lecturers were fantastic, and they walked you through everything you needed to know about coding from the ground up.
