Martin started his journey in the Commercial Team last year as a working student. He puts his expertise in customer acquisition, market research, and simulation implementations for software toolchains to good use. Now, he is writing his Master’s thesis at arculus. This article will give you a glimpse of Martin’s experience with us, both as a working and thesis student.
Hi Martin! Since you started at arculus as a working student, would you tell us a little about your educational background?
Martin: “I have always been passionate about engineering. Therefore, after high school, I applied for the Bachelor in Industrial Engineering at the University of Applied Sciences in Karlsruhe. I was also fortunate enough to do a semester abroad at the Glasgow Caledonian University in the UK, where I completed my major in Computer-Aided Mechanical Engineering.
While applying for the Master’s, the Engineering and Management program caught my attention, and I went for it. Now I’m in the final year of my studies and writing a thesis related to Autonomous Mobile Robots. arculus couldn’t be a better option for the topic I chose!”
Sounds cool! And can you tell us about the work-study balance at arculus?
Martin: “According to my contract as a working student, I was supposed to work 20hrs/week. However, as a full-time student, these work hours were tough to handle. I had a good communication with my manager from the beginning, and we often exchanged how my workload was. He always assured me that my studies come first, and throughout the semester, he respected the lecture hours and university deadlines. Not once did I feel the pressure to choose between my studies and the job.
As a thesis student, I have more flexibility now than before. It’s my project, and I can choose to work whenever I have the time.”
How would you describe your experience so far in your team?
Martin: “So far, I have loved working with my team. They are great people to work with, and you can learn a lot from them. Also, I get critical evaluation from my colleagues during the feedback sessions. I would say it’s a perfect mix of support and challenging tasks.”
And what makes your work experience at arculus different from your previous student jobs/internships?
Martin: “Tasks during my student job at arculus were more conceptual and had to be solved in a team. They indeed proved to be crucial for my development. My internship at another company was the opposite of this. I had to do predefined assignments, more like standard processes. Therefore, my knowledge was limited to those tasks, and opportunities to learn beyond were unfortunately blocked.”
How do you think these conceptual tasks contribute to your learning process?
Martin: “Conceptual tasks are incomplete without experimentation, in my opinion. Hence, the trial and error process plays a huge role in learning. Even if the experiment fails, there are so many new things you learn during the course. Also, the informal discussions with colleagues regarding tasks are helpful. One can always take lessons from those conversations."
What is the most important thing you have learned so far?
Martin: “I have two things to mention, and I think they go hand in hand. The first is to take the initiative even if you don’t feel comfortable with the topic. One needs to come out of their comfort zone, gain knowledge and create something, even if it means creating something to hate at first. It is better to have a first draft and iterate to get better solutions than to have nothing at all. Second, as mentioned before, the trial and error process. Do not be afraid to try out new things.”
To wrap up our interview, do you have any tips for future job applicants?
Martin: “Do not hesitate to gather information while you are at arculus. You’ll always get to learn something new every day. Also, use the networking opportunity.”
