#3 — Curiosity
To gain more work experience and practice in Computer Science and Engineering, I applied for an engineering seminar (Schüler-Ingenieurs-Akademie, SIA) alongside the actual A-level curriculum. Unlike the other subjects, SIA was supposed to enable internships organized through cooperation with universities, companies and other schools to gain insights into other diverse technical fields in the industry and research. I found and still find the idea behind SIA ingenious because we students got insights into the world outside of school, which we lacked and needed. What was unfortunate about SIA, however, was that only a limited number of participants was allowed. They were accepted based on their performance in school. Some of my classmates already knew the technical subjects we were introduced to, as their parents came from academia or industry. Being a labourer’s child (Arbeiterkind), my parents were less able to prepare me as they lived in a somehow different world. I am glad that I was accepted for SIA because, for my career orientation, the weekly internships were so incredibly valuable. I think everyone should get the same chance as I did to gain that kind of working experience besides studying, regardless of their current performance or parents’ home. Today I know that it doesn’t matter who you are. It is much more important who you want to be. I am convinced that children and young people need to be supported much more in practice and encouraged based on their interests. And in doing so, every child should get the same opportunities.
With SIA and some self-initiated corporate internships afterwards, I decided to study Mathematics or Computer Science. I felt comfortable in the subjects because I already had the feeling of meeting “like-minded people” at school. I thought of dreamers who enjoy collaborating on inventions and accepting each person as a human being just the way they are. I wanted to realize my ideas with my team in the back of the world. What’s the point of being in the limelight when each person is doing their part to innovate? I was probably just influenced by the fact that I was one of the quieter students in my school days and preferred to listen to others and observe them. So, although the internships made me think that a technical degree was right for me, they didn’t convince me that the industry was right for me. I felt that the industry was looking for more extroverted characters and that my peaceful world would be disturbed by the hectic economy. At the same time, there were only ever big, loud men in the development departments who treated me differently because I was a girl. And in no internship was the comment not omitted that they were happy to have female additions for once. I felt like an alien, even though I was already used to different treatment and looks from my classmates when I was at school. On the other hand, my highlights were internships in research centres. Maybe it was just an illusion or just faked, but I dealt with the women as men there. It seemed more balanced, and I felt comfortable. At the same time, I was given the impression that scientists are free to determine their topics and tasks more freely than in business and can provide free rein to their creativity. That was what I wanted. Study and research.
Thanks for reading! If you are interested in more or if you want to support me, I would be glad to get a free drink 😚
