Personal Development
PiBS Computer Science: Study and practice combined
Studying and gaining practical experience at the same time sounds great - I thought so too. So I decided to do the PiBS programme at Swisscom.
What is the PiBS?
PiBS stands for Praxisintegriertes Bachelor-Studium. The four-year computer science programme is aimed at people with a high school diploma or vocational baccalaureate. The special thing about it is that, in addition to the two days of study per week, you spend three days working in the company. This allows you to put the specialist knowledge you learn on the programme into practice and gain valuable experience.
The opportunities at Swisscom
Swisscom offers apprentices and students a special training model. The projects are not simply assigned, but the trainees choose them themselves. To do this, they go to the internal marketplace for projects and apply for suitable projects according to their personal interests.
My career
During my time at Swisscom, I was able to gain exciting experience in various projects. My journey began with internal process automation. I used software robots to automate tedious and repetitive tasks and thus relieve employees. Next, I moved to the marketing department. I supported the team in organising competitions. I was allowed to take on responsibility. For example, I was responsible for ensuring the smooth operation of the competition module. This module registers entries for the competition and selects the winners. My third project led me to the event management tool. This makes it easier for event organisers to run events. I assisted with further development using the Next.js framework with React and gained experience in the cloud. Most recently, I switched to the sports streaming platform. I further developed the platform together with the team using PHP and Vue.js.
Kickbox - the Swisscom innovation programme
I was able to gain further valuable experience by participating in the internal innovation programme "Kickbox". All Swisscom employees can work on their innovative ideas as part of this programme. Two colleagues and I worked on bringing plant sensors into the Swisscom product range. It was exciting to work together with the various departments such as Purchasing and Product Range as part of this project. We were all able to develop our interdisciplinary skills.
My conclusion
I am grateful for the valuable experience I was able to gain in the various projects at Swisscom. The combination of practice and study has decisively advanced my professional and interdisciplinary skills. All in all, it was an intensive but very instructive time. I can recommend this programme to anyone who wants to gain practical experience alongside their studies.
Roman Siegenthaler
Student PiBS Informatik
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