Charlotte, N.C. / October 19, 2020 -听Three 星空无限传媒 graduates working at Microsoft are paying it forward to current STEM students. Aisha Davis听鈥13, Bernard Smith 鈥17 and Darnell Harris 鈥11 started a听virtual seminar for students to increase the number of JCSU graduates Microsoft hires.
鈥淲hen I started at Microsoft seven years ago, there were a few alumni working with the company, but they didn't recruit from Johnson C. Smith,鈥 Davis, a senior customer success account manager for Microsoft, said. 鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 until my second year with the company that they made an effort to recruit from HBCUs.鈥澨
With about a dozen JCSU alumni working for the company, Davis says the University is one of the HBCUs Microsoft heavily recruits from. That鈥檚 why her and some of her colleagues are working with students to prepare them for interviews with the company.
鈥淲e鈥檙e really trying to make sure that they understand how strategic the interview process is. At Microsoft, it鈥檚 not just about how smart you are. They are looking for problem solvers.鈥
Davis, never imagined her first job out of college would be with Microsoft and said the opportunity would not have presented itself had she not attended JCSU. 鈥淚 didn't have the best GPA in high school. I had speech issues growing up and I was in basic skills math. Nobody thought I was college material.鈥 During her freshman year, tech evangelists with Microsoft visited the campus and ultimately changed her outlook on life. 鈥淗aving them tell me about their job and spend time with me let me know that I'm important and that there is an opportunity for me,鈥 she said.
Smith said when he first attended JCSU, he had no idea of what he wanted to do post-graduation. Through mentorship and hard work, he was able to find his path and hopes his influence will help others to do the same.听
鈥淥ne of the ways I want to give back is to pour back into the University that raised me,鈥 Smith said. 鈥淎s a first-generation college student, I know all too well the power of mentorship.鈥
Smith said serving as Mister JCSU 2016-17 taught him to be a leader, a skillset he uses in his current role as a premier field engineer with the company.
The virtual seminars consist of one-on-one mock interviews, resume reviews and panel discussions. Davis says they鈥檝e been able to help 30 students total and ten of them have received callbacks for interviews with Microsoft.听
鈥淚鈥檓 grateful to be able to give back to JCSU,鈥 Smith added.
Davis and Smith plan to continue their efforts as long as Microsoft recruits from the University. They hope their efforts help increase diversify the field of tech.
