Introduction
At Nightborn, we love to give opportunities to young, passionate & motivated people. Almost every staff member who works here full-time or freelance has done an internship with us at some point. And we’re so glad they did! The best part is, they seem to be just as happy about it.
As you probably know, one of the key experiences recommended during your time as a student is doing an internship. On our job page we say that interns at Nightborn won't serve coffee, they will run on coffee! ☕️ By joining us, interns can expect to be involved in real projects and collaborate with the entire team.
That’s us talking 🤓. But, how do the interns themselves experience the internship? We asked 3 women, of the dev, design & marketing team.
Why focus on the women of Nightborn you ask?! Well, because app development has the image of being a man's world (FALSE!) and... today is International Women's Day (March 8, 2022). 🙌😍
The rules of the Nightborn internship
An internship should be fun! It should be a way to gain fresh knowledge through professionals willing to share their expertise with you. An internship should provide challenging opportunities, and especially opportunities to discover and develop yourself.
We had the privilege of working with a number of interns at Nightborn. Through our internship program, we strive to provide opportunities to build quality React Native applications, scalable architecture, testing, and everything else that goes into app development. Our interns really have completed an impressive amount of work, from contributing to open-source packages to building real-world apps with clients.
We asked our (former) interns, Maroua (Full-stack developer), Amélie (UX/UI designer), & Christelle (Digital marketer), to reflect upon their experiences and write about some of the things they’ve learned. Here is what they said (responses edited for length and clarity).
First of all, let's meet the ladies!
Meet Amélie, UX/UI designer:
Hey! My name is Amélie Detrez! I consider my biggest strength to be my creativity and out-of-the-ordinary thinking due to my education and love for art. I believe I can often come up with ideas nobody else would have thought of. My biggest weakness is that I'm extremely reserved and have a hard time starting a conversation with others. Even asking questions is difficult sometimes, which is quite the handicap for an internship.
I'm passionate about everything creative. Photography, drawing, design… As long as I can create something with my own two hands.
It's the way I express myself, no other explanation than “I just love it”. ❤️
Meet Christelle, digital marketeer:
Hi! I'm Christelle and I see myself as a very organized & attentive person. Plus, I'm a good listener! However, I'm a strong perfectionist which can quickly discourage me. As a perfectionist, I'm really passionate about design. Whether it's digital, home design, or something else. It's something I can totally lose myself in & from which I can gain a strong sense of satisfaction with the end result.
Meet Maroua, a Full-stack developer:
Hi, I'm Maroua! A 22 years old girl from BXL. I studied at Haute École Bruxelles-Brabant (HE2B) and consider myself a photographer, computer scientist, and traveler (Oh do I adore traveling 😍🌴🏄♀️).
One of my weaknesses is that I'm a perfectionist. (looks good on your resume, doesn't it? 😉). But honestly, if I do something and it's not perfect... Then I tend to dwell on it (too) long. Never finishing things until they're perfect, which can obviously be time-consuming.
But, I'm a woman with many big ambitions and dreams. Very determined and willing to do everything to achieve my goals. You will not find the word "quitting" in my dictionary.
I don't have specific passions, or maybe I haven't found them yet 🤷♀️. However, I love to learn new things every day! That's why I chose computer science! Because you have to constantly educate, train and update yourself on the latest technologies. There isn't really a routine & that's what I love.
As a young startup, I assume you didn't know us yet... So, How did you women end up at Nightborn?
Amélie: Not really... the only reference I had was the internship I found on LinkedIn. I wanted to work here because Nightborn seemed like a very friendly and down-to-earth company from the get-go, which is something I personally enjoy and feel comfortable with.
Christelle: I agree with Amélie, I was looking for an internship in Digital marketing and lucky for me, Nightborn was a vacancy for interns that caught my eye.
It's nice to hear that our vacancies catch the eye of students! Maroua, do you have anything to add to this?
Maroua: I do 😊! The reason I ended up at Nightborn is that I was looking for a small company because I believe I can learn much faster and more effectively here than at a large company. When I saw Nightborn's internship, the first thing I did was do some research on Nightborn. When I visited the website I really liked the design. Moreover, you'll find an introduction about the agency and the different projects that Nightborn has already developed. The work behind it appeals to me very much and that's why I immediately thought that I would learn a lot as an intern with you.
In addition, the website also introduces all employees of the company. I saw that Nightborn cares about every member. So, I submitted my application. ✍️
💡 Curious about this group of Nightborners? These are the folks with whom we share our values, culture, and goals. Each member of the team is unique.
👉 Meet the Team 👈
So far so good. The first impressions were made & the internship could begin! What were your expectations going into the internship?
Christelle: My internship goals were to end up in a startup or company where I immediately felt welcome as a junior digital marketer and where I would be given sufficient responsibility to learn and perform. An independent internship, with a lot of autonomy where I could boost my self-confidence towards future professional challenges.
Maroua: Indeed, I agree with Christelle. I really wanted to discover the work of a developer. Gain experience, learn new languages and develop web & mobile applications. I'm a full-stack developer, which means that I had to learn to work on both the front-end and the back-end of an application.
💡On our Instagram page, we explain the difference between front-end, back-end & full-stack developers 👉 What does a developer do?
However, it didn't stop there. To become a better developer, you also need to learn how to organize a project. This includes being able to communicate with clients. Which isn't always evident for students!
I assume this is also the case for you Amélie? Since you said in the introduction that you were quite reserved...
Amélie: Yep 😊, and as it was my first internship, I didn’t really know what to expect. I mostly wanted to refine my skills and learn more through professionals in the field. I was quite scared before starting because working at “regular” offices always seemed like a nightmare to me 🙈. But thankfully Nightborn proved me wrong and showed me that office work can be very fun, too.
Nightborn began almost four years ago as a two-man business. Today, we're a strong team thanks to the company culture of constantly growing new talent. Resulting in a strong staff of more than 20 experts, including developers, UI/UX designers, and marketers.
We always had a really good idea of what aspiring app developers or designers expect from a mobile app development internship. We knew it had to be a good mix of coding challenges, tutorials, interesting insights, and bits and pieces of the daily life of the Nightborn app developer.
💡 How Nightborn created a challenging culture between designers and developers? 🙌
How did you experience the company culture? Can you describe it?
Amélie: Nightborn has an amazing balance between professionality and fun. They're very inclusive, so even though I'm shy & reserved and everyone around me is the opposite, I still feel very welcome and accepted. They made a very good first impression on me because they tone down the “professionality” (coldness) and make room for more vibrant and friendly conversation. 😍
Christelle: True! The intern is his/her own boss & can try out his/her own strategies & methodologies. You have to "Love what you do" and incorporate some of that joy and passion into your daily work. 💪
That's what motivates the team! And more importantly, try to share that love and passion with the team! Because enthusiasm is contagious. Passing it on to the team goes a long way in maintaining a fun and stimulating work environment.
Beautiful words Christelle and 100% correct! I hope you agree with this Maroua? 😉
Maroua: Of course! At Nightborn, we're constantly working as one team. There's a lot of communication between all developers and other departments & a lot of support in case of problems, which makes the work more fun & interesting.
But it wasn't all fun & games I suppose... 🙈😉 What were your main day-to-day responsibilities?
Maroua: I had to complete several tasks to develop applications and also do the maintenance afterward. I also like that we don't stay in the same project indefinitely. Because we often work on several projects at the same time. What breaks the routine work!
Amélie: Again, I can confirm this 😊... No day is spent the same. As a UI/UX designer at Nightborn, daily responsibilities vary greatly depending on the available projects and work. One day, you create fun visuals for their social media, and other days you will create logos, make a fun-looking homepage for a new project, or do research for a certain application…
💡 How can design benefit your business?
Christelle: My mission as an intern was to handle digital marketing from all angles. To demonstrate what they can do & to show that their technology can help businesses grow, be more efficient, and offer new services to their customers! Raising visibility and interest, so more people can learn about Nightborn and get potential leads.
That's right Christelle, something I (Kevin), the interviewer, try to do too 🤓. What challenges did you face most frequently in your role?
Christelle: As a student and inexperienced marketeer, it was challenging to take initiative and ownership of some projects. At Nightborn, you can't be afraid to go the extra mile and get things done. Being confident and asking for responsibility is the way to go at this agency. 💪
Maroua: As a developer, it was challenging to learn new languages and at the same time develop applications with those languages. We don't always have a lot of time to create an application. The deadline is approaching quickly and as a result, we must work faster and follow the rhythm.
Amélie: I probably speak for myself here, but it’s quite hard for me to know where I stand and what I’m allowed to do or say. I'm just an intern after all, and it’s hard to find a balance between fun and professionalism initially. In UX/UI design, there is an added pressure to create things that are good-looking and functional, which can be challenging considering you need to get used to the graphic design style and the workflow the company works with, which was all quite new for me and different to the things I usually design.
That's very honest Amélie, and in my opinion not that exceptional. As an inexperienced intern, you find yourself in a fun environment, where you also have to perform. I understand the confusion & added pressure this might bring!
Was it extra challenging being a woman in "a man's world"?
Amélie: I haven’t been treated differently at all, so I wouldn’t say it was. Nightborn in general is very inclusive, so I haven’t felt a difference. During my studies, however, we started with about 15 women out of maybe 200 people in total. Today only 5 or so remain. For me, being a woman in this field brings me more strength than anything else, as I feel an extra need to prove myself! Succeeding will bring me a lot of joy. 😉
There's a stigma in my study that women can’t program (my studies combine design & programming among other things), and it's fun to prove everyone wrong. 🤘
💪 Girl power! How did you feel about this Christelle & Maroua?
Christelle & Maroua: Nope! at Nightborn, it wasn't extra challenging at all 😊. We're doing the same work as the men and belong(ed) there very well!
A successful internship requires the total support of the entire team. (Which we love to do 😎🤘). Youngsters need experienced developers to educate and help them build native mobile apps.
Did you feel enough support?
Maroua: As previously stated, the bosses and other team members are always available to answer your questions and assist you if you get stuck with your work. There are also numerous tutorials available so that you can learn more on your own.
Amélie: For UX/UI designers, Nightborn has created several documents to help us get used to Figma & their way of working…. On top of that, as Maroua says, the team helps you whenever you need it, you're free to ask questions or ask for help whenever you want. They offer great support.
And you, Christelle? Because as a digital marketer in a young app development agency you're somewhat of an outsider (no pun intended 😉😇)
Christelle: Hehe's correct, as an app development startup there wasn't yet a large marketing team. So I had a bit of a "carte blanche". But the team and my internship supervisor trusted me very quickly and validated most of my approaches. I was able to contribute many ideas to enrich & feed the agency's media. With that, I'm very satisfied!
Ladies, I'm almost through all my questions 🤝! I just wonder how you will remember Nightborn? What did (or do) you like best about working here?
Christelle: I will remember Nightborn for 3 (big) reasons: the team, the vision & the atmosphere. ❤️
Amélie: The work as a UX/UI designer was very pleasing as every day was different, fun, and challenging. And... The people at Nightborn made it very fun to work here. Not a single day was boring!
Can you top this Maroua? 🤯
Maroua: Well, like so many of the current employees, I'm currently already employed as a full-time developer. Which makes me very happy. 🥳😍 So, in my case, I see it more as "making memories" than "having memories" about Nightborn.
Final words
Are you excited, now you know how our super-awesome interns did it? Then don't waste your time and keep an eye on:
👉 Our Job page
👉 LinkedIn profile
Whether it's development, design, or marketing... The Nightborn internships are appealing in more than one way. Not only do you learn how to build a (mobile) app, but you also get a taste of what it’s like to work in an app development agency.
In addition, as you can see, there're also opportunities for full-time employment or other career opportunities after the internship is finished.
(Yes indeed! Congrats Maroua 😉🥳)
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