Nia Sanders — From Intern to Software Engineer at Google
Hailing from Chattanooga, TN, Nia Sanders always hoped she would end up in NYC. She thought it would be as a performer but little did she know that a class in high school would change the trajectory of her life. She made it to NYC but as a Software Engineer for Google.
She grew up thinking she might become a veterinarian but was also an extremely talented dancer. A teacher at her all girl college prep school reached out to all of the students that were in the honors math and science classes to see if they might be interested in taking a computer programming class. The class provided a supportive environment to play with coding. That led her to Brown University where she double majored in Computer Sciences and Performance Studies. Brown opened the door for her to pursue both because of its requirements that allow the students to pursue the classes they want with the only requirements being in the classes for the actual degree.
When the time came, she was selected for the Google Step internship program. She spent her summer on the California campus. It gave her the opportunity to discover what it was like to be a software engineer with a project in Google Plus for Android. Not the typical internship where one has to run to get coffee or the mail. Her days were immersed in writing code with a partner and it culminated in a project that is presented to the whole team. The biggest lesson she learned while interning was to “ask questions and build answers.”
Nia was then given the opportunity to apply for a full time position at Google. She loves the collaborative atmosphere and the ability to learn from everyone on her team. She does have strong female leaders who are teaching her how to have confidence in her own abilities and voice.
Her love of the arts is still there. She makes time to have room for her artistic endeavors. She is still taking dance classes in Manhattan. She is learning to have a way to have her work life work for her rather than the other way around. In fact, she has even stepped back to work part time at Google to allow for other endeavors.
Advice she would give to young women thinking about going into tech would be “Just be open and trust yourself. Be open to the wide range of possibilities in tech. There are so many different things you could work on. The opportunities are only going to continue growing, especially now that we are in this, what feels like a very virtual first environment and we are going to be in this environment for a while. Continue to be open.”
To learn more about “How She Got There,” head over to Nxt Level.
