One of my friends had an interview with Priya ( An international recruiter in MS) published in MS JobsBlog... Mona was accepted in Microsoft interviews in Egypt last December... she posted a couple of comments here responding to my posts about MS interviews results...
What's really nice is, we have now more than 10 from the Faculty of Computer and Information Sciences Ain Shams university have been offered positions in Microsoft! This faculty only graduated 7 generations! Each have an average of 150 student... it's almost a 1% from the graduates, but these 1% are just normal students in the faculty! I admit there are many better than me that didn't have luck with MS interviews (at least I know 3 of them)! My point I want to prove is, this is considered as a very healthy sign to all FCIS graduates, we are here, in the largest software company in the world! We can do it, any Computer science Ain Shams graduate can do it... btw I hardly passed my exams during college! I didn't like to study and I believe I only studied the last 3 days before the exams, sometimes in these 3 days I open books I've never seen before, I didn't attend lectures, I hardly go to labs! This doesn't mean u should do so; the reason I'm saying this is to encourage everyone to study programming and algorithms harder and harder, be practical, if your grades are not that good in school, u should know that this doesn't mean anything in terms of practical life! GO FCISers! Coz many of u really have talent!
Mona's Interview:
http://blogs.msdn.com/jobsblog/archive/2007/01/25/meet-mona-from-egypt-to-seattle.aspx
What's really nice is, we have now more than 10 from the Faculty of Computer and Information Sciences Ain Shams university have been offered positions in Microsoft! This faculty only graduated 7 generations! Each have an average of 150 student... it's almost a 1% from the graduates, but these 1% are just normal students in the faculty! I admit there are many better than me that didn't have luck with MS interviews (at least I know 3 of them)! My point I want to prove is, this is considered as a very healthy sign to all FCIS graduates, we are here, in the largest software company in the world! We can do it, any Computer science Ain Shams graduate can do it... btw I hardly passed my exams during college! I didn't like to study and I believe I only studied the last 3 days before the exams, sometimes in these 3 days I open books I've never seen before, I didn't attend lectures, I hardly go to labs! This doesn't mean u should do so; the reason I'm saying this is to encourage everyone to study programming and algorithms harder and harder, be practical, if your grades are not that good in school, u should know that this doesn't mean anything in terms of practical life! GO FCISers! Coz many of u really have talent!
Mona's Interview:
http://blogs.msdn.com/jobsblog/archive/2007/01/25/meet-mona-from-egypt-to-seattle.aspx
19 comments:
Ah nice post, and CONGRATSssssssss to MONA, and about you Hany, you have schocked me with what you said about yourself in college cuz you don't seem to be that carless person, but it's true about the relation between the grades and the practical life, the only thing that really matters is what you know, and your ability to work and learn more.
Peace:)
:-$ Sorry to disappoint u! :-) I’m not careless; I just read or study what I’m interested in (I didn’t like most of the subjects or the doctors teaching the subjects)! :-) So u summed what I needed to say, ur grades don’t reflect who u really are! I’m a person love to go and hang out and play a lot! It still doesn’t mean that I’m not good in what I’m doing, it’s just a whole package, I maybe a little smart, :-) but I’m so into playing all the time! So, anyone who feels he's not 100% into subjects they study in college, Study whatever u feel is interesting 2 u... as long as u like it, u'll succeed, if u didn't achieve all ur dreams, at least u r doing what u like!
btw: check tahyeees.blogspot! It reflects a lot of my fun life with my freinds!
By the way - I'm pretty much the same...I used to study like one day before the exam :) Although I did well in my CS courses (almost always an A) and a worse in my math/physics/general courses (B's)...
Actually, the only reason I pretty much studied is because of my wife :) We were friends at the time, and I used to study with her :P
I am of the philosophy is that I either understand something or I don't. I hate memorizing, and I don't do it. So I either understand something or I don't...and if I don't understand something, I dont think studying at home will help me...It's not like re-reading the book will suddenly enlighten me to what the concept means...
The only exception to this is Math...practicing math helps...but I wasn't gonna practice math...thats just not fun :P
Oh yeah and...
Go AUC!
It's late, there is nothing on TV and I'm not sleepy...so I'm gonna post Hany's TODO list publicly in an effort to get him to do it!
1) Buy some swimming shorts!!! I've been trying to get him to go swimming for the past week and his excuse is he doesnt have a mayoo!
2) Lets finally reserve for the Murder Mystery train!!! (there is a train here u get on for several hrs and u have dinner and there is a murder mystery! It's called Spirit of Washington)
3) Lets come up with a group for the Puzzle Hunt!!! For the non-MS readers. Puzzle Hunt is like an annual treasure hunt made by people from Microsoft Campus. We need 8 players min! It seems very tough - apparently people go through the night solving the puzzles for an entire weekend.
Yalla ya Hany! You should post when you get everything done (so people can see how slow you are!)
And I can guess what Hany is going to say in response to all of this: "3awez al3ab kora!"
@Ali 1st comment - :-) Go Egyptians! Go everyone have the passion for technology everywhere in the world!
:-) And really... I want to play soccer! And OK.. I'll buy swimming shorts this weekend! And we can book for the train thing next weekend coz I'm broke :-$...
About the puzzle hunt, I'm up to it! Let’s start a team!
bs bgd... :-) 3awez al3ab kora!
yaaaa, I hope to be in MS soooon I adore this company in everything, I need to high my skills to join it.
me too walahy wala b7dr wala b3ml ay 7aga 3'er baro7 el kolia 3lshan ashof el nas wy ashof e7na a7'dna aih wy lma bn7dr... ento 3arfeen el Drs wy shr7om :( bn23od nr3'y aw nsm3 o3'nyt el lila el kbera :D:D
@Ali, while I am still in vacation you let me remember when I was studying with... ;) I see that study days better than staying @ home :( (3lshan mafysh mozkra):D
nice post Hany,
i agree with you that grades does not refelct on success in proffesion, but one point is that you have to have the grade which lets you go to the faculty to study what you like
for me, i always loved computers and programing, i was a pioneer in this at the 80's, my dream was to study this in university, my grade at the sanaweya amma wasnt enough to get me what i wanted so i studied BA in faculty of commerce, now i am working in something related to both business and electronics, but i missed to get into the carrier i wantes
thats why i see the educational system in Egypt is damn lawzy, you dont study what you are talented at, or what you like to study, you just study whatever your grades at "sanaweya amma" get you in university.
Regards
@Ramy... Good luck, study hard, prepare for going to the interviews, MS is coming next march to Egypt, if u r not ready enough by March wait till maybe June... Read MS interview tips and shoot for... Hope I'll c u here one day! And if u need anything I'll be more than glad to help.
@Black-Horse: Totally with u, going to a faculty that u didn't like, or changing ur career depending on ur grades in subjects that u didn't even like is never a good idea! Good luck with ur current career, and hope that one day u'll do what ur heart wish to do.
Hany - MS will not be going back in June - The March date is the last time until possible again in December (the reason being in June it will be too late for H-1B Visas)...So I think he should do his best for the March date.
Black-Horse - You are right. It was the same in AUC - We declare our major after our first year and people without a high enough GPA don't get in. It sucks - everyone should study what they WANT. Unfortunately, if that was implemented in Egypt 50% would go to Medical school and 50% to Engineer school :P (For those that don't know, this is a joke because many parents in Egypt want their kids to either be engineers or doctors)...The thing is, I believe, you can still learn and work in the career you want without a B. Sc. - For example, in my freshman year at University, I was working on Linux and the GNOME desktop environment. It was a lot of fun and it taught me a lot. Did you know that there are some talented people who only have a High School degree working at Microsoft? (I was told this by someone)...Unfortunately, foreigners can't get a work visa unless they have a B.Sc. (but there is a possibility that you can substitute experience for that).
@Ali - I'm not sure when MS is going to come back, but I believe they go to Egypt every 3-4 or maybe max of 6 months! I'm really not sure... I just know that they visit Egypt periodically...
Hany - Well, i guess you are partially right - we don't know when MS is going back for sure, but its important to know that this March is the last time you can apply before they begin H-1B applications (i.e. start date of Oct 2007). If you miss March, then pretty much even if MS comes in May or June, or if it comes next December, the earliest you could start is Oct 2008...
Of course, all of this is moot, if they change the stupid H-1B quota system...but so far this is the case...
Hi Again,
Hany, thank you for your kind support, wish you the best
Ali, yes i agree with you, specially that if they made the one choose what he want 50% going to medical and the other 50% to engineering, you know what is that, thats because education in Egypt is for FREE, they dont have to pay the expenses for it, mean while they consider the books cost is a high cost, no mention of the private sector universities, i dont trust they do really learn a Sh....
well, if you have some time, you are welcomed to check some post i wrote a couple of weeks ago in my blog concerning this matter.
i believe you see in the states how the students at 16 work in restaurants or selling books, news papers or even cut the lawn to save money for their education cost
thats why every one is free to study whatever he likes and can afford the cost of it, besides to pass some test shows that he has the ability and talent to do so.
maybe one day god would give us some wise man to manage the country and would think correctly and take actions that would change the ways we live, work, drive, get educated and most of all the way we treat each other
thank you for your concern
Actually, I dont think the only problem is free education...Even if it was for money, parents would pay for their kids to become Engineers/Doctors. Plus, if you make these majors for people with money, I don't think thats really fair.
As for the US - I don't think its true that most people work to pay for their tution. Minimum wage as a bus boy for example far from covers it. There are two main things I think - people go to Community Colleges (much cheaper for them) - Keep in mind the rates for international students are A LOT higher than for us. They also get financial aid from the federal and state government. Parents can also open something like a tax-free investment account when they are born (called a 529) and finally if all of this fails, they can easily get student loands (low interest rates, u only need to start paying after you graduate)
One possible solution that you did not directly mention for the major issue though is to have some sort of examination (and in my opinion possibly an interview too). I think also the idea of Liberal Arts (like AUC) for the first year is good. It exposes you to many different subject areas so you can get an idea of what you would really like to study (most people I've seen don't really know what they are interested and are just pressured either by peers or by parents to go into a major they don't really like)...
As for working while in University...I strongly recommend it (at the minimum internships!!!) And always pick something that challenges you. During my freshment year I worked on GNOME/Linux and during my junior/senior year I actually worked as a Telesales rep in a call center (very challenging, and new for me, but I learnt A LOT about Sales :P)
yes that is true, but not all parents are able, financially, to pay tens of thousands of pounds every year to let their son or daughter learn to be a doctor or engineer, as of the private sector universities now a years.
me also agree with you about the importance to work during the early steps in university, not for the money, but for the experience, i did it 16 years ago, and that helped me a lot to be steps ahead, i used to work as a sales rep for gate way computers, which was a real big name by then, in 1990 summer vacation, after i passed 1st year of faculty, same for the second year i joined another company selling computer accessories mainly to petrolium sector companies, this sort or early experience gave me the opportunity to admit jobs for multi national or american companies since then.
Nice dispatch and this mail helped me alot in my college assignement. Say thank you you seeking your information.
how can i get an interview in microsoft
can any one give me link to send my cv to?
i sent it to
www.careersmicrosoft.com
is there other address can i send to ?
please any one can reply to me
Sorry for the late reply Hassan. I'm guessing you mean http://careers.microsoft.com/
Yes, you should apply there...
Make sure you adjust your CV to emphasize the skills that match the job you're applying to.
Best of luck and let me know if you have any questions. Feel free to contact me using the contact me form on my technical blog.
Post a Comment