woman standing on boardwalk by river

Go ahead with it and you won’t regret it. You gain valuable experience  which is extremely helpful in your future career.

Shannel was one of two women in the graduating class of Computer Systems in 2014. She attributes her experience with Workday during her co-op to her successful career today. 

Tell us a bit about yourself, what course did you study in UL, what has your career looked like to date?  

My name is Shannel Kahiga and I’m originally from Kenya. I’ve been in Ireland for 17 years now. I enjoy meeting with family and friends, trying new foods, going to concerts and candle-making during my free time. I also love travelling, meeting new people and going to the cinema.  

I did Computer Systems at UL and graduated in 2014. Fun fact, we were only two females who ended up graduating in the course at the time. Very proud to be one of them. 

My career to date has been software testing and ensuring that projects are delivered on time and without bugs as well.  It’s very rewarding when the client comes back saying that they are happy with the software we have built for them. 

During my career, I have managed other QAs, overseen projects and been a trailblazer for QA in one of the start-up companies that I worked for. At the moment, I’m a Senior QA engineer for TEKenable which is one of the best companies to work for in Ireland.  

Tell us a bit about your co-op placement, what organisation did you work with and what year it took place? 

I worked with a company called Workday for my work placement. It was a wonderful experience. People were very welcoming and willing to help when I had any questions.  My placement was in 2013 for 9 months in Dublin.  

What impact did your co-op placement have on your future career? 

It had a great impact because I have been working in my field since I graduated from UL. I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for the experience I accumulated from Workday. 

What piece of advice would you give to students going on co-op now? 

Go ahead with it and you won’t regret it. You gain valuable experience which is extremely helpful in your future career. Once you graduate, you may be hired by the same company or be able to apply to another company and get recruited straight away due to the experience you have accumulated during your time at your co-op.