WIMTACH Student Profile: Gagandeep Singh

When Gagandeep Singh decided that his career path would be in the Information Technology (IT) sector, he made a strong decision to travel to Canada to follow his dream of making a difference. As a graduate of the Information Technology program, Gagandeep was looking to develop his skills. To achieve this, Gagandeep enrolled in the most challenging program at Centennial College, the Software Engineering & Artificial Intelligence program.

During his education with Centennial, he learned about the opening of a Student Researcher position with WIMTACH. As a result, Gagandeep applied for the position. Such opportunities are unique, but to have one available during the middle of the COVID pandemic was fortunate. “When this WIMTACH opportunity appeared, I applied as soon as possible because I knew … how much it would help me,” he said.

In the process of applying for the developer internship opportunity with WIMTACH, Gagandeep had an interview with one of WIMTACH’s research leads. The interview went very smoothly and allowed Gagandeep to understand the specifications of his potential role with WIMTACH fully. “It felt as if he genuinely wanted me to succeed, so I tried to do just that,” Gagandeep mentioned. The wait after the interview was very tough, but soon after, Gagandeep got a correspondence informing him that he got accepted for the internship. “I was just thrilled,” Gagandeep stated.

Through his internship, Gagandeep was able to perform tasks that complemented his academic knowledge. This enabled him to gain a greater aptitude for programming languages like Java and supported him in developing his expertise with new tools, like Angular. Also, due to the access WIMTACH has to exclusive software, Gagandeep was able to work with Artificial Intelligence, which is a rare experience for someone who hasn’t graduated college yet. “Everyone was just so helpful; my manager, the one who hired me, would be open to help me on every topic and angle. Moreover, because many of us were students, it was effortless to seek help, as everyone needed it as much as I did,” he said. At this point, Gagandeep worked with WIMTACH for nine months as a student Front-end Developer.

In his work with WIMTACH, Gagandeep specifically contributed to a project with a company called Xello Inc. He described his project contribution to Xello as “the most engaging and interesting work experience.” His role enabled him to network with the Xello team extensively. As a result, he was offered a position in Front-end development, which he happily accepted. “WIMTACH is fully responsible for this opportunity I got,” he said, adding, “WIMTACH is as real as it gets in simulating real work experience on campus.”

Gagandeep is already preparing for his new role with Xello, and he is looking forward to the tremendous opportunities and achievements that he hopes to gain with the company. Speaking about the goals Gagandeep had set for himself, he stated, “I want to be a part of a big and reliable team of professionals who are all fighting for the product we all believe in.” He also mentioned that he is fascinated by the opportunities the WIMTACH experience has given him. This allowed Gagandeep to have a job before graduation, a commodity among all students.

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