From Pre-Med to a Software Engineering Internship at Microsoft with Annika Bassey

While Annika thought she was set on attending medical school she decided to take her first introductory computer science course and see where it goes!

Since then, through many coffee chats, coding practices, and so on, she has landed a Software Engineering Internship at Microsoft HQ! Not to mention her continued involvement at Harvard  - whether it be through Harvard Athletics Black Varsity Association or Varsity Women’s Tennis Team!

Annika never thought much about Computer Science and didn't think she would even like it… but the combination of having extra time during the pandemic and her older brother constantly telling her why tech is SO important inspired her to just try it out!

Hey Lizzie Ann: What a pivotal course!

Annika Bassey: Yeah, It really surprised me how much I ended up liking the CS50: Introduction to Computer Science course I took – to the point where I was rethinking if Med School was truly the path for me. But could I see myself coding every day as a job? That’s when I started looking into potential Software Engineering internships!

Hey Lizzie Ann: Love how you decided to take that leap! Coming from a non-traditional background, did you face any particular challenges?

Annika Bassey: Securing an internship was tough! Because the class was quite introductory, I did a lot of self-studying to prep for coding interviews that were heavily focused around data structures and algorithms.

Thankfully, Make A Play Foundation – for underrepresented student athletes, also helped me prep for interviews, touch up on my coding skills and connect me with other Software Engineers in the field.

I ended up meeting a Harvard alum at Facebook too, who suggested showcasing the technical coding projects I’ve done in class alongside measurable impact on our resume! What did you specifically implement that made the student club or program better?

Hey Lizzie Ann: Awesome progress! How did you eventually land your Software Engineer internship at Microsoft?

Annika Bassey: I started applying to Microsoft in January, had my phone interview around the end of February, two coding interviews a few weeks after and finally my offer around early April!

Fortunately, because the phone interview wasn’t too technical, I found I had already learned most of the concepts in class. It also included behavioral questions so I was able to tell my story, answer why this specific position and what I could bring to it – which includes my experiences in student organizations. Knowing I had less of a background for this internship, this would also be a big opportunity for me to expand on my coding skills and learn a lot of different things.

When it came to the coding interviews via Codility, I read my books, dived into LeetCode and practiced problems – as many as I could in a day while taking my classes.

Hey Lizzie Ann: Amazing! What resources did you find helpful?

Annika Bassey: I used the Cracking the Coding Interview book and watched a lot of YouTube videos where people talked about their experiences and coding interviews. I even found videos of people recording their coding interviews so you can get a sense of what an interview would typically look like, what kind of questions they might ask and what they look for!

It's pretty cool how many things you can learn from the internet now!

Hey Lizzie Ann: Definitely agree! What was your favorite part about working there?

Annika Bassey: I really enjoyed all the things I got to do over the summer – especially since my manager and mentor asked what I wanted to get exposure to (which included engineering fundamentals and front-end technologies like React)!

I also got to co-present Docker – a technology I didn’t even know before the summer started, alongside my mentor at Microsoft’s big internal Spark Tech Conference! Although intimidating, I found it really rewarding because we had to not only learn a technology but master it enough to teach it at a live conference.

Hey Lizzie Ann: Sounds like you had a fun and valuable experience! Coming into the role, did you have any specific goals?

Annika Bassey: My biggest goal was to just be a sponge, gain as much information as I could and be open to trying out different things to see what might be my favorite!

I really tried to push myself to network too, and especially as an intern you have this "intern card” where pretty much anyone would be willing to meet with you – just reach out to them! Because I share a Pre-Med background I made it a point to meet with people who worked on the healthcare side of our commercial business as well.

It was exciting to talk about the work they do and see all the possibilities within this field!

Hey Lizzie Ann: Love how you were able to merge your Pre-Med background with Software Engineering while discovering a new path! 

Friends, let’s celebrate Annika’s next adventure as a Software Engineer at Microsoft NYC (yes, she accepted her return offer) by following her on LinkedIn!