On January 29, 2018 master classes took place at the Faculty of Information Technologies of Polotsk State University with top managers from A1QA Software Testing Company – Dmitry Lubnevsky, Head of Information Security and Mobile Testing Directions, and also Elena Dovgalyuk, Personnel Manager.
Nowadays A1QA Software Testing Company is one of the largest in Central and Eastern Europe in the field of software testing. A1QA cooperated with leading Russian system integrators and developers of software products such as SITRONICS, CROC, Kaspersky Lab and many European and American companies.
On December 19, 2013 A1QA company opened its branch in Novopolotsk. For five years the experienced specialists, working there, have been carrying out training sessions for students at the Faculty of Information Technologies. As a result, students have an opportunity to have an internship or get a job placement in A1QA.
The administration at the Faculty of Information Technologies pays a great attention to study process in order to maintain high quality standards for specialists preparation. The academic staff always coordinates syllabuses according to employers’ requirements.
Dmitry Lubnevsky: «Our company is the only one of such a level in CIS and in Europe, dealing with software testing. Many developer companies have testing departments. We’ve distinguished testing as a separate service, dealing with its development. This is our main focus. We pay attention to functional testing, but also tend to test automation, security testing services and many other directions. We become an attractive company for students and our potential staff members, because here you have many opportunities for your development.
Due to such meetings, we have a great chance to show the development prospects in the field of testing and to consider us as potential employers. Nowadays in any company it is important to have particular skills, which are necessary in your profession, to work in a team.
We often come to students, talk to them, tell about the company and hold a selection. Due to such meetings we form a team for training.
I’m amazed by the beauty of Polotsk State University campuses! The academic staff of the Faculty has a great desire to help students and care about their employment. The atmosphere, that students have, and care, the academic staff takes for communication, are always reflected in our joint work. I’m pleasantly surprised!»
Stepan Ekhilevsky, Dean of Information Technologies Faculty, Doctor of Science in Engineering, Professor: «Our faculty maintains very close cooperation with many international IT-companies in Belarus which have their branches all over the world. The representatives of companies – the administration and staff members – communicate with our students from the 1st academic year, because working process in such organizations requires specific knowledge. Today the representatives from A1QA company have come to meet with our students, to tell them about their organization, talk to them and distinguish, who can join their company in the future. Such meetings are quite regularly carried out with many other companies. We have at least 10 Agreements about basic organization with leading companies-residents in High Technology Park. We are very glad that famous and advanced companies are interested in our students and our faculty. We tend to develop such a cooperation.
Today Elena Dovgalyuk also has held a training session for 1st- and 2nd-year students at the Faculty of Information Technologies. Students are very interested in this company. Many of them would like to work there in the future. That is why it’s really important that students know main employers’ requirements at the beginning of their study process at the University: interest to profession, motivation to develop in a particular direction; high engineering level; good English, interpersonal skills».
Elena Dovgalyuk: «Today my goal is to tell students not about the company or testing, but to talk to them and introduce the definition «career capital». The most important thing at the beginning of student life is to think what you are doing at the moment and how it can influence your future. It’s necessary to develop, study at the University, look at the prospects that can be outside the university. Our variant of the cooperation, which we can offer students, is put into this meaning of «career capital», because being a student, you can come to us and try your hand in this field. Those, who successfully complete the first stage, can have a training even if they don’t know about the directions. We’ll teach you everything.
Students successfully reconcile work and study at the University. The experience demonstrates that 3rd- and 4th-year students, who have worked in our company, successfully reconcile work with a study process. Now they are staff members of our company. I think that this kind of our meeting is very useful, because we tell students about opportunities. Students graduate from university, having professional experience. It is great! Apart from professional growth, students develop their personal identity.
Those students, who come to us, become more responsible and disciplined, because they have real experience, that can be implemented in practice. In our company there are certain values – qualitative result, atmosphere, self-development and self-learning. This is the exact thing, that unites us with the university, because here there is a great atmosphere, learning culture, self-development. Everyone tends to have that. I have only positive impressions about PSU. I want to come back here again and again!»
