At the age of 18, Sophia Khezri found herself embarking on her future as she began interning for Facebook. She is now a part of the Facebook fam, as she worked there for the past two summers, and will continue again this upcoming summer. She has had many accomplishments since such a young age in a very hard field, so I thought it’d be great to learn more about her and what she does at Facebook.
HC: Introduce yourself!
Sophia: My name is Sophia Khezri and I am from Columbia, Maryland. I am currently a junior computer science major at the University of Maryland, College Park. I am a part of University Honors in the Honors College, and an active member in The Quality Enhancement Systems and Teams (QUEST) Honors Program and Kappa Delta Sorority.
Photo by Sophia Khezri
HC: When and how did you become involved with Facebook?
Sophia: I first became involved at Facebook the summer after my freshman year of college as part of the Facebook University Program for Engineering. Facebook University (FBU) is an 8-week internship program for freshmen and sophomores in college and is designed to provide mobile development experience. I heard about FBU during my senior year of high school and knew I wanted to apply when I entered college. After the application and interview process, I was fortunate to be accepted into the program and spent the duration of my internship in Menlo Park, California working alongside a team and manager in order to develop a fully-functioning iOS mobile application. At the end of my eight weeks, I received a return offer for a 12-week software engineering internship in Boston.
HC: Do you want to tell us a little more about what you do at Facebook?
Sophia: This past summer, I had the opportunity to work in the Facebook Boston office as a Software Engineering Intern on the Location Products Team. In particular, I worked on iOS mobile application development of the Nearby Friends and Live Location Sharing products. I really enjoyed my designated project because I had the opportunity to work on front-end aspects of Facebook and Messenger mobile apps, while also learning about testing, logging, and user allocation. As an avid Facebook user, it was very rewarding and exciting to view my changes on the Facebook app and understand how other users interacted with it.
HC: You have been so accomplished since a young age — Do you have any advice for young adults trying to get internships?
Sophia: The best advice for obtaining any type of internship at a young age is persistence, confidence, and networking. During the first few weeks of my freshman year, I decided to attend the Computer Science Career Fair, even though it was primarily for juniors and seniors. My resume wasn’t very strong and most companies were looking for older students. However, from that experience, I met so many individuals, learned about startups and companies I was unfamiliar with and was exposed to potential internship and job opportunities for a later time period. When given the opportunity, it is imperative to network and develop professional relationships that will prove to be resourceful in the future. Additionally, confidence, especially at a young age, is of the utmost importance. During my freshman year, I was always doubtful of myself and my abilities because I was in predominantly male classes. As I’ve gained confidence in the technical field throughout my college years, I’ve learned that employers look for tenacious applicants, who exhibit leadership qualities and always work towards growth and efficiency. No matter what age, race, or gender, no individual should ever feel insignificant or lesser in their work field as everyone has the same potential for success.
Photo by Emily Ginsburg
HC: What are your favorite parts about working at Facebook?
Sophia: From the past two summers, I have had a very positive and beneficial internship experience and have greatly enjoyed working at Facebook. Overall, the culture at Facebook is very open, fast-paced, and innovative. With a wide diverse range of employees, everyone was always open, excited to hear about new ideas, and willing to help. Whenever I was stuck with a problem, other employees on my team were always readily available to help and guide me through my issues. In addition to the engaging culture and environment, there were also many enjoyable perks: breakfast, lunch, dinner, on-site amenities such as gyms, workout classes, game rooms, and music rooms, and organized intern events after work hours, including a Broadway show and dinner cruise along the Boston Harbor. From my experiences thus far, I have learned so much not only in terms of my programming skills but also have grown from the relationships I have developed and the people I have met.