Nils Siemsen

Study programme: Information Management and Corporate Communications (BA) (opens in a new window)

Employer: right. based on science GmbH

Position: Software Developer

Contact: LinkedIn-profile (opens in a new window), XING-profile (opens in a new window)


Straightforward or via detours: what was your school career like and what interests did you have as a younger person?
Since graduating from HNU, I have worked as a software developer, helping companies in a wide range of industries to achieve digital success - even though (or perhaps because) this career was not in the cards for me for a long time. In fact, for most of my educational career, I was more of a humanities scholar. I stayed away from anything technical, immersed myself in classical subjects, studied history and Latin and aspired to a career as a teacher. It wasn't until my interdisciplinary degree programme at HNU that I reached a major turning point that significantly shaped my future career. The practical teaching in a field that was completely unknown to me until then - IT and programming - quickly sparked a real enthusiasm for the subject. My enthusiasm turned into a corresponding internship semester in web development, and the internship turned into a job as a tutor. So my enthusiasm became a vocation long before I graduated. Although I had never had anything to do with software development before, HNU not only offered me the opportunity to discover a completely new subject area, but also provided me with all the prerequisites to develop my talent and successfully make the leap into professional practice. So I was equipped not only with my technical skillset, but also with a sound knowledge of business and design. Last summer, as a lecturer in web engineering, I was even able to share my knowledge and experience from the other side of the lecture theatre - and hope to have passed on some of my enthusiasm.


What tips can you give young people who are looking for the right degree programme?
Don't obsessively search for a degree programme that you think you already know or have mastered. Don't focus on the school subjects in which you had better grades. Don't tell yourself that you can't do something. Anyone can learn anything. Be open to the unknown and dare to try completely new things. Or in the words of Henry Ford: "If you always do what you already know, you'll always be what you already are."


What tips would you give students on your degree programme?
Don't just focus on one aspect of this interdisciplinary degree programme. Have the courage and get involved in the subjects that you don't think you like. See the broad range of subjects as a strength rather than a challenge.


What is your advice to all graduates who are looking for their first job?
Look for a job as a working student in the higher semesters at the latest. This will allow you to make contacts, gain experience and find out which job profile and corporate culture really suits you.


What was your first job like and how did you hear about it?
In my first job, I was a junior software developer at Lemonize GmbH. I found out about the company through a fellow student, was a working student and was even able to write my Bachelor's thesis there.


Please describe your daily work routine. Which projects do you work on and which tasks do you particularly enjoy?
As a software developer, I work directly on software products. During the design phase, I work with the development team to consider how we can best implement certain requirements from a technical perspective. I then implement these requirements directly in new functions as part of the programming process. Close and constant contact with particularly relevant stakeholders such as customers, UX designers and product owners is crucial in order to understand the expected outcome. This is where the broad technical focus of my degree programme is particularly helpful, as it enables me to better understand the different perspectives. The development process itself takes place in an agile environment under Scrum. This means that the relevant meetings such as dailies, retrospectives, reviews and demos are also part of everyday life. This classic tech job is also very communicative and extroverted. The transfer of knowledge and support in the use of the developed products is also an issue. Direct help for end users makes it possible for every user to use our products in full, regardless of their digital affinity.


What experiences from your studies at HNU have proved valuable in your professional life?
The many and complex group tasks in different subjects can be extremely challenging. Not only in terms of content, but especially in terms of people and organisation. What everyone learns here is team spirit and communication skills. Even today, I often think back to how projects were led to success during my time as a student, what kind of communication is crucial for this and how different people can be brought together successfully. This still helps me today in my day-to-day work - because everyone has to be a good team player at times.


How would you complete the beginning of the following sentence?
HNU... “gave me the challenges I needed to grow. ”