RIT's cooperative education helped me aim for mid-level job positions after graduation

January 31, 2022

Marin Androš is our Web and Mobile Computing graduate who decided to transfer to RIT Croatia after studying at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture for three years. "I just could not find the motivation and interest in the program", says Marin adding that this was the main reason why he decided to transfer.

Studying and learning at RIT Croatia is efficient!

One of the things Marin highly appreciated at RIT Croatia was how students learn: "I am a procrastinator, and as such not pampered by the public education system where huge amounts of material and information are passed on, and left to students to discover in detail and absorb" says Marin. "I believe in the principle of continuous work (which is at the core of studies at RIT) which what enables the absorption of knowledge so efficiently. Furthermore, everything that the student needs to know is covered within lectures, labs and assignments (yes, this is part of the curriculum)!"

Marin emphasized the importance of networking at the college: "I was always trying to do more than required (only for things that interested me of course). The thing is that this effort was recognized, so I worked as a teaching assistant and tutor in various program related courses, which in addition to additional monthly income, resulted in one of the great benefits that is often overlooked - networking! I was able to work with different students (some of whom, like me, transferred from other schools). I met amazing people with whom I work on projects outside my regular work."

"Furthermore," he notes, "unlike my peers from some public colleges, I was well prepared by RIT to immediately jump on a project and start contributing in a real work environment. Namely, during each program related course we've worked on various projects, such as multiplayer online game, and applications like booking manager, gaming library, etc., which gave us great foundation for the future."

The power of cooperative education

RIT is globally recognized for its career-oriented education. In addition to high American standards of education, an integral part of preparation for future work is working in a real business environment through a carefully designed program of cooperative education that includes 800 hours of internships that must be related to the chosen field of study.

"During my studies at RIT Croatia, I did three internships that represent the best way for students to work on real problems and in real environments," says Marin. "The co-op I did after the sophomore year led me to the Javascript world in which I am today. I worked the entire junior and senior year at Megatrend company where I had the opportunity to develop products within a wide range of technologies (Java, Python, C # and JS). This helped me discover my interests and what I would actually like to do."

Today, Marin is working as Backend Web Developer at the Point Jupiter company. Thinking about preparing for the business world after college, he mentions a few things:

• the importance of an environment that motivates students to learn,
• an individualized approach to students,
• networking with employers,
• and a focus on practical knowledge and working on real projects.

"After graduating from college, I had two years of real working experience, which allowed me to skip junior positions and automatically aim for mid-level positions at the ITC job market where compensations, necessary competencies and expectations are higher. None of this would have been possible if I hadn't worked on real and complex projects in college. That helped me gain relevant knowledge and experience, and also put me in a favorable position when negotiating in my job search," adds Marin.