It is safe to say that the world of academia is comfortable, or at least familiar, with Microsoft. Whether it is a college student finishing an essay at 11:58pm, a professor planning out a semester, or the mother of an elementary school student frantically throwing a science fair board together the night before it is due, Microsoft’s products save the day more times than anyone can count.
Computer Engineering graduate Tanner Lewis has the unique opportunity to work with Microsoft this summer as an intern for twelve weeks, working to improve the products that millions of people rely on every day. Tanner is on the Quantum Computing team, where he helps build computing solutions that Microsoft uses across their different platforms. The Quantum Computing team is located in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Tanner’s time there has provided him valuable, first hand-experience.
Along with the perks of a private office, Tanner has the chance to work with Microsoft professionals on a daily basis. With the help of other team members and staff, Tanner is constantly learning how to improve his own project, while seeing first-hand the types of work that others are working on. He remarked, “I can get a feel of what the full-time employees do and what my job would look like as a full-time employee.”
Attending Brigham Young University was incredibly influential in Tanner’s career choice. Reflecting on his time at BYU, he commented, “I’ve taken the computer architecture classes in our department, and those got me excited for computer architecture in general.”
This exposure provided by the Electrical and Computer Engineering department helped Tanner make decisions about his future. “As I was interviewing with Microsoft, I indicated that that’s what I liked to learn about, and it’s what I wanted to work in. They brought me into this group and this is where they’re working on and where that knowledge is used and where they’re exploring and trying to innovate new computer architecture solutions.”
Tanner’s internship at Microsoft will no doubt provide a leg up in his future as a computer engineer.