Oren Nachman - ICT Student

Originally from Melbourne but grew up overseas. I am a third year Computer Science student at UWA. Last summer my wife and I were flown over to Redmond in the USA where I completed a three month internship at Microsoft and walked away with a number of offers to return. I am currently employed fulltime as a programmer at iiNet.

What do you do?
I am a systems level programmer tasked with designing and developing front and back-end systems with a combination of languages and technologies ranging from Open Source packages such as Perl and MySQL to various proprietary systems. As part of "giving back" to the community I also participate in various Open Source projects.

What do you love about your work?
Creating things! Coding is an art form and as such every problem has multiple approaches. You can't top the feeling of solving a complex problem with elegant coding practices.

What is the money like?
A new graduate can expect to earn anywhere between $40,000 - $65,000 depending on the company and position.

How did you get to where you are today?
Computing started out as hobby for me ever since our first family computer. Going to uni has been a big step in pushing me forward as it has helped broaden my horizons and encouraged me to explore areas of computing that I would not have otherwise been exposed to.

What made you decide to work in ICT?
The fast rate of change, the ability to lead and innovate and foremost the chance to write amazing software that could have positive affects on millions of people worldwide!

Is the ICT industry what you expected?
A toughy. I think that the industry as a whole, but especially in Australia, is still in it's early stages of growth. Large companies such as IBM that have a large development office in WA are leading the pack by adopting "global workplace" initiatives that allow them to tap skills from all around the world regardless of your location.

What do you find interesting about working in ICT?
People! As interesting and fascinating as the technology is, it is nothing without the people (imagine an internet with no one on it!). Working on interesting projects and new technology.

Where do you see your job in ICT taking you?
My own company. Deep in the heart of every developer is the desire to be able to work on his own pet projects as his proper day job.

What advice would you give someone considering a career in IT?
Love what you're doing - whether it be administration, development, design or management if you have a passion for computing this is the place to be. Believe in your ideas and your ability, but always be ready to listen to others and their ideas - there's something new to be learned every minute!

Why would you encourage others to get into the ICT industry?
ICT is an amazing industry to grow in - once past the entry level positions you can choose the technical, design, test or management streams and there is always room to grow or move around. It's a dynamic and growing industry that can still be influenced, even by a new, motivated, graduate. Good Luck!