Students enhance education through Siemens PLM co-op
Within Siemens PLM much is said about students that use Siemens software in the classroom or in real-world competitions, the focus being primarily on the experience gained from interacting with the software before graduation in solving mechanical engineering problems. However, there is another side to the software, made up of those who develop, maintain, and make sure that it is up to date and ready for universities, students, and industry to use on a daily basis. Without the programmers that work for Siemens there would be no software for these institutions to use.
One of these programmers is Dale Luginbuhl, a student at the University of Cincinnati studying computer engineering. He began his co-op with Siemens PLM in January 2015 and is currently on his third rotation, of five, in the summer of 2016. Luginbuhl is a Strategic Co-op and is assigned to the CAE 3D Simulation NX development team where he aids the full-time developers on the team with their projects. This includes running tests, writing test code, and resolving problem reports for the NX CAE application.
Through his co-op Luginbuhl is gaining valuable experience that complements his chosen field of study, “working with the NX code base has greatly improved my skills and knowledge as a programmer. The more I work with it the more confident I become in my software development abilities.”
Felicia Boyd, University Relations Program Manager for Siemens PLM, elaborates on the student employment program, “Siemens PLM Software has rolled out the Strategic Student Program (SSP) in which it is designed to give students hands-on experience working in the software industry applying what they’ve learned in school to real-world working projects. Students work closely alongside a mentor and have the opportunity to participate in several University Relations events whether it be Student Power Hours, Lunch & Learn, Co-ops & Donuts, and Career Development Workshops just to name a few to truly create a student community.”
When asked what his favorite part of the co-op experience is Luginbuhl said, “The great part about being a co-op is that I have the opportunity to work with experienced developers on an established product.” A co-op offers a similar experience to the real-world competitions Siemens sponsors. “This job provides me with experience that cannot be gained in the classroom and it has allowed me to see what a job in software development is really like.”
This experience is allowing Luginbuhl to see past the classroom and gain a full understanding of what his chosen career entails, a full picture that is impossible to create within his coursework alone.
After he completes undergrad Luginbuhl plans to pursue a Master’s of Science in Computer Engineering and hopes to return to Siemens PLM Software. His experience was positive, “I will take with me all the technical skills I learned, knowledge of the corporate work environment, and a good work ethic.”
Boyd explains the progress made with the program, “I’m excited to see the momentum with the expansion of the program and know this will help position us an employer of choice on college campuses. This strategic program will strengthen our competitiveness in the industrial software marketplace.”
Siemens is committed to training the workforce of tomorrow, whether within the company or for its more than 77,000 valued customers around the world.
