My Time as an Intern at OpsLevel

_{Pranav Krishnan is a Computer Science student at the University of Waterloo.}

I first started working at OpsLevel in May 2019 and it was my first ever co-op experience. I was extremely nervous, with no clue what to expect. Fast forward almost a year later and I find myself struggling with the idea of leaving this company behind.

Working at OpsLevel was an amazing experience - it gave me the chance to do work that was truly important and to learn and grow with the support of awesome mentors and peers.

How did OpsLevel contribute to my growth as an intern?

I worked two terms with OpsLevel: one from May 2019 to August 2019 and then from January 2020 to April 2020. Both terms were vastly different, contributing heavily to my personal and professional growth. Within my very first week of working at the company,  we set up goals and expectations for the internship, which was key in my personal development. Over the course of the internship, I had bi-weekly one-on-ones with my lead, resulting in a constant source of feedback. At the end of the internship, we reviewed my goals and evaluated my success and failures.

The most important part about working at OpsLevel was being treated as a full time employee. I never felt as “just an intern”, doing one-off tasks that no one else wanted to do. I was constantly challenged to do my best work, to meet ongoing deadlines and achieve sprint goals. I had the opportunity to work on key features of the product and participate in planning meetings, retrospectives, and product discussions.

What were the best parts of the internship experience?

Over the course of the 8 months working at OpsLevel, I got the chance to participate in many amazing team activities. Some of my favourites include an escape room, an amazing three-day excursion to a cottage, as well as axe throwing. There were also awesome perks such as catered lunches, a constant source of snacks, and after work video games.

Halfway through my second term, the world was struck by the COVID-19 pandemic. This resulted in a massive change in the dynamics of the company, as we were forced to all work remotely. Despite these changes, my peers and I were still able to keep up the same morale through lunch games and virtual socials.

However, my favourite part of working at OpsLevel was the culture. Everyone was so welcoming, and always wanted to help you as much as possible. I felt like I was part of the team, not just an outsider doing boring mundane tasks.

How was I challenged?

When I first started at OpsLevel, I was very inexperienced when it came to product decisions, architecting a solution from start to finish, and even attempting to do research on an uncertain task. However, throughout the course of two internships at the company, I was given the opportunity to significantly improve my knowledge in these areas.

I was pressured to take ownership of increasingly difficult tasks, balancing input from my peers as well as making decisions on my own. This not only forced me to step out of my comfort zone and attempt to solve problems that were completely foreign to me, but also allowed me to learn how to take constant feedback and improve.

In conclusion, working at OpsLevel was an extremely rewarding experience, filled with learning and overall fun. I simply can’t recommend it enough.