Zara Khan

Scheme: DTS Software Engineering Graduate

Hello, my name is Zara and I am currently on the DTS Software Engineering Graduate Scheme at Centrica.
I went to Royal Holloway University, where I studied Computer Science. As part of my course, I also completed a Year in Industry here at Centrica, working as a Data Scientist. 

I am really interested in new up-and-coming tech, following the cricket and exploring new places. My hobbies include playing pool and cycling (which I self-taught myself at the age of 23 – It’s never too late!) I am also very interested in photography and carry a digital camera with me almost everywhere!

What does a normal day in your role look like?

I start my day off with the very first meeting of the day, our stand up, where my team briefly shares what they did the day before or any concerns they want to raise. Then, as a programmer, problems arise at any moment of the day and the rest of the day is then dedicated to solving them and creating solutions.
I have also started taking on an architectural and testing role where I get to participate in meetings, talking about current processes and how we can fix/improve them.

Why Centrica?

Centrica’s graduate scheme is very well-structured. Three eight-month placements are the perfect amount of time to trial your future career. Not only do we get three opportunities to find our most suited role but also eight months to really settle into a role and get the most out of it. 

Specific to DTS, Centrica allows us to try many opportunities, across the technology space. We get stuck into roles consisting of AI, Big Data, Software Engineering, Web Dev, DevOps, Cloud Engineering and many more! We can also choose the business area to trial it out in such as trading, group functions or retail.

What did you study at University and how has this helped you with your role?
I studied Computer Science which gives a great leverage and allowed me to get accustomed to a new role quite easily, as I already have the knowledge of the fundamentals. However, the scheme caters to those who have very simple programming knowledge as well and plenty of support is given. 

I already had programming knowledge prior to starting work in industry however I found it was completely different to university, and gained so much experience in the process such as a stricter coding style, working with git in an agile environment, regular stand ups and retrospectives, scum, kanban and much more!

What impact did you Year in Industry have? 

By doing the Year in Industry, it made my degree much easier to understand, especially in my third-year, since I gained a lot of the knowledge needed for my exams both practically and theoretically. 

I also gained a lot of personal skills such as many opportunities to present in person and online, which helped me with presenting my third-year dissertation and making it feel like a walk in a park. 

I also had many chances to meet senior leadership, creating exposure to them at such an early stage of my career and also finding out what their day to day looks like.