Celebrating Women in Technology – Sindhusha Rongali Basu
Posted on September 28, 2020 by Keith Lynn
Hello, I’m Sindhusha Rongali Basu, alumna of USA. I would like to share my story of being a girl intimidated by software technology, and how I managed to become an architect in the IT industry.
I’m from India, and I’ve earned my bachelor’s degree in Electronics & Communications Engineering. In my final semester, I was selected for a multinational company, Tata Consultancy Services, during campus recruitment. That’s when my serious journey with technology started.
Beginning of my career, information technology was hard for me to comprehend. I really wanted to give up. There were two choices in front of me - I can either work for a monthly salary and remain stagnant, or work hard and learn technology. I’m so happy for the choice I made that day as I’m able to write a story about it right now.
Luckily, I’ve gotten so much help from many individuals who groomed me and mentored me, which gave me confidence to take up challenges. As time goes on, my thought process and analytical skills are improving, although I felt my skills were rudimentary. That’s when I made my next choice to pursue higher education, and then I applied for my master’s in Information Systems at the University of South Alabama.
Two years in South is a great time to cherish forever. I’ve learned various programming languages, tools and technologies. The best part is I got a chance to take advantage of both theoretical learning from school and practical experience from my internship as Project Management Intern at USA Health Systems Information Services. I’d learn a technology/concept at school which I’d share/implement at my workplace, which was super cool. My school projects and whole curriculum of my major was designed so well and is on par with current technologies that we use in the real world.
My journey was hard to begin, since I started with zero knowledge, but with constant self-motivation, discipline and great support from family, I’m able to achieve my dreams. I graduated from South in May 2018 with 4.0 GPA which is a feather in my cap.
During my final semester at South, I updated my resume and applied for full-time jobs on the Handshake Job portal. I got a call for an interview for the position of Software Developer at Safety Plus, Inc. and was selected. I’ve been building an enterprise application for the company and wearing several hats like architect, developer and project manager, and everyone’s so proud of me.
All I wanted to say is once you’ve tasted the fruits of your hard work, there will be no looking back or giving up. You will continue no matter how hard your challenges or struggles are going to be. Have courage to take the first step and the choice to make a difference.