Name: Tegan MacMurdo
Hometown: Brooklyn Center, Minn.
Major: Data science, computer science
Position: Software Engineer 1 with TCP Software
When Tegan MacMurdo made her way to a career and internships fair at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls during her freshman year, she didn’t know she was setting the stage for her first job.
Tegan, a data science and computer science double major from Brooklyn Center, Minn., who will graduate May 4, said attending the career fair on campus during her freshman year led to a return trip to the fair the following year and a conversation with a representative of TCP Software, a Texas-based company that makes time and attendance software.
Those discussions turned into an internship, which led to a part-time job with the company. Tegan performed so well in those roles that TCP Software notified her in July – 10 months before she graduates – that she could have a full-time job. She accepted and will begin her new position in June.
“If I hadn’t gone to the career fair that first year and learned to get comfortable talking with potential employers, and then gone the second year and had impactful talks, I don’t think this job would have happened,” Tegan said. “It was all about going to that career fair and being brave enough to go talk to people, to build up the confidence to do it.”
Because of her experience, Tegan urges students to muster the courage to attend career and internship fairs held at UWRF. Doing so can make a profound difference in helping land a job in your field, she said. It can even lead to being hired before you graduate, as happened with her.
“I didn’t know I was going to get a job before I graduated,” said Tegan, who had another job offer and chose to work for TCP Software in its River Falls office because of her positive experience there as an intern. “Get involved, get an internship, and it will open doors for you.”
Internships help students decide whether their career choice is right for them, Tegan said, and connects the dots between classroom learning and employment in the workplace.
When she arrived at UWRF, Tegan wasn’t sure what she wanted for a career. She took a survey that revealed she was skilled in computer science, actuarial science, and math. She initially studied data science but learned as she progressed through coursework that she had an affinity for computer science.
“I like that it’s a kind of puzzle,” Tegan said of computer science. “I get to look at existing software and think through how it all works together. You have to reason through it, and I like that. Each project is a new adventure.”
Tegan praised her instructors and classes at UWRF, saying they provided meaningful instruction and rigor to connect to the working world.
“UWRF gave me a strong understanding of how computer science and programming work which allowed me to get my foot in the door for my internship,” she said. “It was really a great combination of learning in school, then connecting that with what I learn on the job.”
Having a job in advance of graduation “has been a relief,” Tegan said, and has allowed her to better plan where she wants to live and to more fully enjoy her senior year. She is excited to begin her new job and said she someday would like to work in a leadership role.
“I feel really good about my future,” she said, “and so much of that is because of the work I did and connections I made during my time at UWRF.”