Fall is here and we’re thrilled to welcome the latest addition to the CENGN team – our Fall 2017 co-op students!

This Tuesday, CENGN once again opened its doors to students from universities across the country, namely University of Ottawa, University of Victoria, McMaster University, Waterloo University, Dalhousie University, Carleton University and York University. Over the next 4 months, our new students will be working with CENGN’s Engineering, Project Management, Finance, Marketing and Administration teams.

CENGN has consistently demonstrated its commitment towards expanding the supply of skilled workers in the ICT sector by collaborating with academic partners to train young talent. Every year, we host around 40 students who get immersed in the CENGN Infrastructure and the organization’s diverse ecosystem of members, small businesses, industry associations, and government. In the end, each student will have gained a real feel for the inner workings of the next generation networking industry. During each work term, students handle innovative projects in their respective fields, which expose them to skill enhancement and networking opportunities. Our students also receive career guidance and mentorship from experienced professionals, preparing them for their future job roles.

Fall co-op students in a boot camp session

For the third time running, our Intern Manager, Randy Elias, is coordinating and running an extensive 3-week boot camp program for the new students. The program consisted of presentations from the CENGN team including past students, training seminars on SDN and live demonstrations of specific tools, including Atlassian’s JIRA and Confluence, employed at CENGN. We set aside the time to run this training at the start of each term because it gives the students a better opportunity to understand how we operate at CENGN, get to know each other as well as the people they will be working with, and gradually ease into their job placements.

Moving into week 2, the boot camp continues in a more technical direction for the Engineering students. This semester’s program takes on a slightly different structure as we introduce them to open source and deploying OpenStack through our CENGN OPNFV Community Pharos Lab infrastructure. You can learn more about our Pharos Lab training and certification for students here.

In order to create a work environment which simultaneously meets the needs of CENGN and students, we place a great deal of importance on the work expectations and learning goals of each student. By investing in our students, CENGN is actively building up the next generation of thinkers who will spearhead growth initiatives in information technology and strengthen Canada’s leadership in Next Generation Networks.

Student Expectations

George Xavier, Cloud Service Engineering Student from University of Ottawa

“I am looking forward to all the hands-on experience I can get working on various SME projects. Working with open source communities will give me the knowledge and exposure I need to advance my engineering career as a Cloud Solutions Architect.”

ShinYae Yun, Administrative Specialist Student from McMaster University

“I’m hoping to understand the responsibilities and importance of different departments and positions in the company. I would also like to learn how to prioritize daily work tasks.”

Sam Robillard, Cloud Infrastructure Engineering Student from Carleton University

“I hope to learn how to use various open source Cloud and SDN/NFV technologies such as OpenStack or OpenDaylight, and to continue to develop my knowledge of network engineering.”

Fortunately for our Fall 2017 students, CENGN has a number of exciting events and activities lined up for this semester. We’re looking to our brilliant group of students to bring onboard fresh ideas and perspectives to make this term even more interesting!

We’re currently accepting applications for the Winter 2018 co-op term. To find out more about our student programs and how to apply, check out our Academia & Students page!

About the Author

CENGN, Canada’s Centre of Excellence in Next Generation Networks, drives technology innovation and industry growth through our testbed, technical expertise, talent development, and partner ecosystem. Through our projects, CENGN enables small and medium Canadian Enterprises to test and validate promising technologies, removing barriers to product commercialization and accelerating market growth.

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