DVT graduate developers 2022
Priyal Budhu, a graduate developer at DVT, completed his Bachelor of Computers and Information Sciences in Application Development at Varsity College Sandton in 2021. His journey at DVT started on his 21st birthday later that same year in September, the day on which he signed his contract to be part of the company’s graduate programme.
“I felt that DVT’s extensive Graduate Programme would help bridge the skills gap between myself as a graduate and the workplace better than other IT companies’ internships and graduate programmes, because of the intensive and specialist training offered to each graduate,” says Priyal. “Additionally, the Programme’s graduates are mentored and coached by experts, where you learn the best practices used in the software development industry.”
According to Priyal, the culture and environment at DVT “make you feel like you belong and have a purpose.”
“DVT invests so much into their employees, including the graduates. The result is a unique working environment where the employees are motivated to be hard-working professionals and strive to create innovative solutions.”
Imposter syndrome is a prominent issue for recent graduates entering the working world. To address this, the manager of the DVT Graduate Programme held a workshop with the graduate developers to reassure them that they belong at the company and can get the job done.
The values of diversity, inclusion and belonging are at the core of DVT’s culture. “Our mentors encourage us to express ourselves so that we can bring our individuality to the company,” mentions Priyal. “Everyone at the company makes you feel like you matter and you’re not just another number. Your colleagues are friendly and engaging, and you can have a conversation with anyone in the building without any hesitation. If you are struggling with a problem, it is simple to receive help.”
DVT’s Graduate Programme allows participants to choose between different tech streams: UX/UI, iOS Development, Web Development, Open-Source Technologies (Java Programming), and .NET Development.
“I decided on the Java tech stream because I heard that it was the most complex, and I was up for the challenge. The Java programming language was also the language that started my journey as a programmer, so I wanted to learn how to build advanced applications using Java. The icing on the cake was that the Java team at DVT would have a go-karting day!”
With the 2022 DVT Graduate Programme hitting the tracks full steam from day 1, Priyal already learned the following skills in his first two months:
Technical skills:
- Clean Code. How to make my code more readable for other developers
- Java Standard Edition Fundamentals
- Software Architecture Patterns
- SQL Basics
- UML and Data Modelling
- SOLID Principles and Design Patterns
- Best Practices for Code Quality
- Test-Driven Development (TDD)
Soft skills:
- Time management, communication, collaboration, and teamwork.
- The ability to take evaluated criticism from my mentors and not feel demotivated as it is a learning curve.
- Self-learning. Effectively learning various concepts independently.
- Learning in collaboration. In your relevant tech stream, you will work in a group. It is essential to learn from your colleagues, work with them and never be shy to ask for help when struggling with a problem.
- Empathy. Empathy enables you to understand another person’s perspective on a given topic or problem.
“I am incredibly grateful to be part of this fantastic company. I want to thank DVT for allowing me to be part of the Graduate Programme where I can develop my knowledge and skills,” says Priyal “I cannot wait to make a positive impact and help with the growth of DVT.”
