Code Mode: Graduate Lands Job at International Consulting Firm

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Posted on August 20, 2024

Thomas Becnel

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#MyFirstJob is a series focused on recent graduates of the University of South Alabama.

When Mary-Stuart Lewis decided to study information systems at the University of South Alabama, she had never written a line of computer code in her life.

“I just jumped into it,” she said. “There’s definitely a learning curve — it’s like learning a new language — but it wasn’t frustrating for me because I enjoy learning, and I love a challenge. I liked the web development classes, so I took as many of them as I could.”

Lewis brought to her task the academic confidence that comes with earning a perfect 4.0 grade-point average in high school and college. Straight A’s. Not a single B or anything else.

“Never,” she said, laughing. “I don’t know if it’s perfectionism, or what, but I always wanted to do the best I could do. I just put in the work that it took.”

At South, Lewis learned computer languages such as SQL, HTML and JavaScript. She earned an internship at CGI, an international consulting firm with an office in the Research and Technology Park on campus. She enjoyed the work environment and helpful colleagues.

After graduation, she was offered a full-time job in software development.

Lewis recently completed a boot-camp program to begin her career. Her office has an open floor plan, and people choose to sit wherever they want, but she and a few others stay near one of their supervisors.

“We kind of cornered him,” she said, “so we can ask questions.”

She grew up in Bay Minette and attended Baldwin County High School, where she was on the school dance team, the Tigerettes. At South, she joined the Kappa Delta sorority, where she was technology chair.

“I think I was the only one there from the School of Computing, so everyone came to me for tech support,” she said. “I definitely didn’t mind helping out.”

During her senior year, Lewis became a regular at the Student Recreation Center.

“My friends and I like to go climbing on the rock wall,” she said. “We wound up really getting into it. But now we’re all working, so we don’t have as much time.”

She and a few friends rent a house in west Mobile. Her younger brother Langston, a biology major at South, also lives there. So does her pet gecko, Todd.

It couldn’t be more convenient.

“I live right off campus,” she said. “The time from my driveway to the office is three minutes.”

At work, Lewis enjoys putting on headphones and listening to indie music while writing code. It helps her feel locked in. Many programmers work remotely, but she expects to keep office hours.

“I’ll probably do more in than out,” she said. “I like to get out of the house. Going to the office, having a designated space, will be good for me.

“The most important thing I learned as an intern was the value of working as a team. I like working together with people to solve problems.”

When Lewis began coding, she felt like she was behind students with years of experience. Now she’s more secure in her position. Several young developers are starting work at the same time.

“My dad told me to take it one day at a time,” she said. His advice: “Get through the training. Be confident in what you know. People are there to help you learn.”

Returning to the place of her internship gives Lewis a head start. She’s working for the same people, doing many of the same things. Solid ground.

“I haven’t been overwhelmed by it,” she said. “I did it last summer, so I knew what to expect.”

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