• What is your job title?
  
• Please give a brief description of your job, specifying what you do each day.
  
• What have you been working on or teaching lately?
  
• What most interests you in your job?
  
• What do you like least about your job?
  
• What has been your career path?
  
• Was there any person who inspired you to do what you are doing today?
  
• What attracted you to this career when you were in high school?
  
• What careers in your field do you see as promising?
  
• What advice do you have for young women who want to work in your field?

Q: What is your job title?
A: Software Quality Assurance Engineer
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Q: Please give a brief description of your job, specifying what you do each day.
A: The company where I work sells networking equipment called routers and switches. I test a piece of the software, called the internet protocols, that runs on the routers and switches. I write programs to verify that the software works the way it was defined to work. When it doesn't work properly I write up a detailed description of the problem and report it to the person responsible for fixing it.
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Q: What have you been working on or teaching lately?
A: The specific area of software I mostly work on are called multicast protocols. The names of a few multicast protcols I test are PIM, DVMRP, and IGMP. These protocols allow multicast applications like playing videos over the internet to work. I verify that these protocols work properly, according to their specifications.
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Q: What most interest you in your job?
A: I most enjoy having to solve detailed technical problems that arise. As a tester, it is my job to find the "bugs" or problems with the software. I have to understand how, when, and why these problems arise. I enjoy digging in and always learning new information. I also enjoy working with the developers, the people who design the software and ultimately have to fix the bugs.
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Q: What do you like the least about your job?
A: There is quite a bit of software to test, and the schedules can be demanding. The most challenging aspect of my job is to find the time to finish all the work that is scheduled!
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Q: What has your career path been?
A: My career path has been very interesting. After college, I worked as a software developer for 6 years. I then switched companies and worked as a Corporate Systems Engineer for 3 years. I provided pre-sales technical support to our salespeople and I also gave product demonstrations to customers. This position required quite a bit of travel and didn't balance well with having children.

Once my children were born, my priorities toward work changed and my top-most goal was to work part-time. Since then, I looked for positions in which I could work less hours, but still be able to complete my tasks. I have been working as a software quality assurance engineer (tester) for the past 5 years.

I have had to take what some people might consider less prestigious jobs, but I don't mind, because I am able to balance my career and children in a way that works for me.

In total I have been working in the computer/networking industry for 15 years.
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Q: Was there any person who inspired you to do what you're doing today?
A: Not really, although I have to say I am thankful for the other "part-time" moms in the computer industry. I feel we are at the forefront in changing the flexibility of companies and their attitudes toward part-time engineers.
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Q: What attracted you to this career when you were in high school?
A: I always like math and science. My parents said, "Why don't you go into computers? It's supposed be be an up-and-coming field." That was pretty much it. I chose Computer Science as my major in college.
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Q: What careers in your field do you see as promising for the future?
A: There are several promising careers in computers, including those in the areas of communications (networking), databases, business software, security and anything having to do with the internet.
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Q: What advice do you have for young women who want to work in your field someday?
A: When in college, I would definitely recommend trying to "co-op" in a field you think you're interested in. I would recommend looking for colleges that support a co-op program. This is a program that allows students to spend a semester working for companies in their fields of interest. Gaining real-life experience at a company gives you several benefits: You get to see if you really like what you think you like, you get real working experience which gives you an edge over other college graduates and companies have already invested in you and are more likely to make you a job offer once you graduate. Even trying to find a summer intern position in an area of interest during high school and college can help you determine what you like and don't like doing. I definitely recommend paying very close attention in high school and college to the classes you most enjoy. Then if you can find a career in those areas, you have the best probability of enjoying your work.
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