Why Qualtrics – Nick Tran – Software Engineer – Seattle, WA

My name is Nick Tran. I graduated from Georgia Tech with a Bachelor’s Degree in Aerospace Engineering. After college, I worked as a structural engineer at an airline and the job was very customer-focused. I took pride in knowing that my work helped people arrive at their destination safely.

During my work in Aerospace Engineering, I took some online programming courses. I enjoyed the courses, so decided to enroll in the Master’s CS program at Georgia Tech. There is always an influx of new technologies and I’ve always loved to learn about them.

Qualtrics is a customer-obsessed company. At Qualtrics, I have an opportunity to help build products that millions of people use. Additionally, I am always encouraged by my manager, mentor, and coworkers to learn and expand my knowledge. As a junior member of the tech industry, having great co-workers, support, and opportunities to expand my knowledge and skills is an aspect that is very important to me.

What was the turning point where you 'had to have the job'?

When I was an intern last summer, both my manager and my director offered to have weekly 1:1 meetings with me. My manager always asked if I was satisfied enough and always helped me with any problems that I had. My director taught me a lot of things, ranging from technical to leadership… Additionally, my mentor and coworker were always available for questions. I felt that the people at Qualtrics genuinely want you to succeed, and I still feel that way now.

What does your day look like?

I work as a software engineer for TextIQ R&D team. My day usually looks like this:

• Start the morning with a cup of coffee and a chocolate-dipped-coconut nutrition bar
• Look over metrics to make sure that our team’s services are running smoothly
• Participate in standup with my coworkers and manager to update what I did and if there are any roadblocks
• Work on my sprint tasks
• Lunch
• Read and research blogs/papers about ML
• Continue working on my projects. By now, I’ve probably had 5 cups of Cozy Chamomile tea

What is your favorite part of your role?

In my current role, I get to work on both engineering and researching. I have many opportunities to learn about different areas in both software engineering and machine learning.

So, you moved to Seattle, right? Can you tell us your story of moving here?

I was born and raised in Vietnam. I moved to the U.S. when I was 14, and I went to college in Atlanta, GA. A lot of my college friends are working in Seattle and they were a big factor in my decision to move to Seattle from Atlanta.

What surprised you most about working at Qualtrics?

Given the amount of work and daily tasks that we have, I’m very surprised that the people here are always willing to help me with any questions/needs that I have.

Bonus: Describe Qualtrics to a candidate in 3 words!

Challenging, Satisfying, Growth

Qualtrics is growing, and if you're ready to find your "why" at a place like this, you can explore our open opportunities at any time by visiting our career page. Looking to discover more reasons "Why Qualtrics"? You can find the whole series here.

Want to chat? You can get in touch by checking out Qualtrics Life on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

	Nick is a Software Engineer for the TextiQ R&D Team in Qualtrics’ Seattle office. He holds a Bachelors in Aerospace Engineering from Georgia Tech and is currently enrolled in the Online Master’s in Computer Science program at Georgia Tech.