Giang (Daniel) Tran

Bachelor of Information Technology

Vietnam

Recent Bachelor of Information Technology graduate, Giang (Daniel) Tran, has landed a job as a software engineer at a fast-growing start-up in the Conversational AI space.

Giang came from Vietnam in July 2017 to attend high school in New Zealand.

“I wanted to live in a new country and more importantly experience New Zealand's globally recognised educational system,” he says.

He did years 11 and 12 of high school in Nelson before completing a New Zealand Diploma in IT Technical Support at Aspire2 International.

He then decided a bachelor’s degree would best prepare him for a career in IT and enrolled with OPAIC.

Since completing the Bachelor of Information Technology at OPAIC, Giang has secured a job as a software engineer at a fast-growing start-up in the Conversational AI space - Ambit AI.

“My day-to-day job is to write computer code to maintain the Ambit platforms and build up new solutions to help solve Ambit clients’ needs,” he says.

Giang says his studies here have prepared him well to work in his chosen field.

“The courses at OPAIC were developed to give me an idea of what to expect when working in the IT industry.”

He completed a five-month internship as a software developer intern at the Cloud Solution Provider, Umbrellar, during his final year of study.

After completing his internship, he landed a job as a Junior Web Developer at LifeDirect, which he carried out alongside his study.

“I loved the flexibility of studying here as the lecturers always facilitated for me to rearrange my study schedule so that I could undertake my IT job to gain industry experience,” says Giang.

He says one of the best parts about studying at OPAIC was all the friends he made.

They have many great memories together, including rushing to submit assignments on time and playing pool in the student hub during breaks. They still keep in touch now that they’ve finished their programmes.

Giang encourages all current and future students to make friends on campus and enjoy the student life.

He also has another piece of advice: “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”