A group of outstanding graduates from the Faculty of Engineering and Design and the Faculty of Science returned to campus this week to talk to students about their experiences working at Google offices around the world and to offer them advice about what it takes to become part of Google’s team of professional engineers.
On March 23, two alumni spent the day in the Faculty of Engineering and Design touring its facilities and speaking with engineering students in an informal and intimate setting. Dan Calvert and Maryam Tohidi – both Bachelor of Computer Science grads from the class of 2003 – were accompanied by Rafik Goubran, the dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Design, and Roshdy Hafez, chair of the Department of Systems and Computer Engineering.
Calvert, who works at Google’s research facility in Waterloo, Ont., talked about his unique path to becoming a Google employee and the kinds of tasks and challenges he faces every day. As the employee for a start-up acquired by Google, his recruitment path was different from many others but it was his skill set that remained the true measure of value to Google.
“No single skill or area of expertise will be the ticket in,” says Calvert. He stressed that, “Rather, the ability to solve problems seems to get a lot more attention. You still need the technical skills, of course, but you need to be able to apply them to a wide range of systems, platforms, environments and challenges.”
Tohidi, who works out of the St. Bruno California campus, shared her experiences working on the YouTube application. She works closely with other YouTube engineers, especially in Switzerland, to continue to bring value to the YouTube platform.
Several fourth-year students had opportunities to ask questions directly to these two Google employees about life at Google, hiring practices, what skills work the best in their environment and, ultimately, what it takes to work at Google.
Dr. Goubran spoke proudly about Carleton’s long relationship with Google. He highlighted how Shona Brown, who graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering degree in 1987, started at Google when it was still considered a start-up. She received an honorary doctorate from Carleton in 2014, and, although now considered retired from her senior vice-president position with Google, she still acts in an advisory role with the company while also helping other start-ups get a foothold.
Ross Koningstein, a 1984 engineering grad who is Engineer, Director Emeritus with Google and the driver behind Google Adwords, still has close ties with the company and with Carleton. To support his alma mater, he will be hosting a networking event in his California home this spring for alumni, those working at Google – and other industry notables, to showcase Carleton innovation.
On the logistics side, John David Radcliffe, an engineering grad from 1990, rose to become vice-president of Real Estate and Workplace Services at Google.
In addition to the tour of the Faculty of Engineering and Design, the Google alum will participate in the second annual Google Day set for March 24 from 1 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. in Fenn Lounge. The session will include input form Wenbo Zhu, who is currently a software engineer at Google and has been working on its cloud networking infrastructure for over five years. Zhu, who holds a PhD degree in Electrical Engineering from Systems and Computer Engineering, joined Google in 2007 as a member of the original Google TV team.
Dean Goubran stresses that the university remains a vital source of talented graduates who are making an impact at Google. “Carleton’s Faculty of Engineering and Design is producing graduates who are sought after by prestigious firms such as Google. This is a tribute to the high calibre of academic programs, teaching and research that Carleton is providing to its engineering and design students.”