What’s the best thing about being a graduate at Cognizant?
I heard about Cognizant through a senior Cognizant colleague who recommended it to me as a great start for my career.
The Cognizant Graduate Program has an excellent training structure focusing on a range of technical and soft skills to give us a core foundation of knowledge. We’re also given mentors to help us through the journey of working on a client site, and we can reach out to them easily for help at any time, or for guidance on the areas and paths we want to pursue.
There are a lot of things I have loved about being a Cognizant grad. The flexible and inclusive workplace culture that really supports us and caters to our needs, to begin with – even though we have been working from home during the pandemic, they have organised a lot of fun events like Trivia nights, Diwali celebrations and others to keep us entertained.
I also appreciate the numerous networking opportunities we’re given to expand our connections and build our personal brand. And the best part is the clients we get to work with. We get to work with real clients immediately and add real value to them, all while learning and making new friends along the way.
Tell us about your day-to-day experience with the people, projects and learning resources at Cognizant.
I attend daily stand-ups where I discuss my tasks and update my team on my progress, and of course, I go through all my emails and organise my priorities for the day. For a lot of the day, I work through tasks assigned to me for the sprint, which range from running database queries to creating and updating relevant documentation.
I also go to a lot of meetings with my squad about sprint reviews, sprint retros and building activities, and we have some check-in sessions as well. Once a week I have a catch up with my mentor and we talk about how I’m doing and if anything can be improved in the program.
The general culture at Cognizant and among the graduates as well is really good. We have a close group who have gotten to know each other pretty well, despite working remotely. Although we are working from home, we still talk and interact all the time, which is important.
What’s your advice for university students who are exploring future opportunities in the Technology and Consulting space?
I would say to follow companies through different forums so you can see what they’re working on and if it aligns with areas you are interested in. Also, follow big names in the tech space (e.g. Elon Musk). When you are up-to-date on the ways technology is being harnessed to benefit society, you have a lot to talk about when recruiters ask about your interest in the tech space.
It's also good to connect with HR recruiters that work in the tech space through LinkedIn as they can provide more background and clarity on their graduate programs and what they have to offer. Campus recruitment events and careers fairs are also highly beneficial as many tech companies will be present and it’s a great way to ask questions and establish connections with a range of employers.