“I’m not sure where I will end up when I graduate, but I know that my experience at Cisco will give me a huge advantage!”

Semester at Cisco Systems
Steve Burnell fulfilled his second cooperative education requirement at Cisco Systems, Inc. (www.cisco.com) in North Carolina. Along with three other Wentworth students, Steve got to work with corporate enterprise networks to aid in customer advocacy as well as complex problem solving and freethinking through a range of equipment problems.

One of the things that Steve liked the most about his coop experience was the amount of responsibility and independence he was given. When he started at the company his managers provided basic training, a desk space, a mentor, and then let him do his job. This gave him the freedom to push himself to reach his highest potential.

“I think they assumed that if you are taking this position then you want to learn. If you do not take advantage of all your resources then you are only hurting yourself. The way I was treated made me feel respected, and it motivated me to do my best.”

Taking advantage of real life resources
Steve was encouraged to gain insight from all of the departments and take advantage of all of the facilities. He was pushed to talk with the engineers about how things worked, and to use the labs as resources to study and explore the Cisco technology beyond what he was experiencing in his position.

“Everyone on the Cisco campus was helpful; I didn’t come across anyone that wasn’t willing to answer my questions. Being able to have a Cisco experience will help me wherever I end up. The equipment is everywhere and being able to use it alone will be advantageous.”

Future plans
Steve got the position in North Carolina ‘by chance,’ but that is not the way he is planning his future. He has secured another co-op at Cisco Systems in Boxborough, MA. Although he enjoyed his prior experience, Burnell wants to get something new out of his next co-op.

Read more about Wentworth's co-op program.