This is my UofT PEY Co-op Work Term Report. PEY is a 12-16 month co-op for UofT Engineering students, and at the end of it, we had to submit this reflection on two skills chosen from a list. Not meant to be too specific or technical.
Intro
I accepted a Cloud Database DevOps position at Huawei. The job description mentioned a breadth of languages and concepts, though the day-to-day actions were largely self-directed. Ultimately, I had an undefined scope, leading to a variety of work across scripting, benchmarking, debugging, testing, and documentation of my work.
I had not done any programming in high school, but gained interest in it soon after. I started with Python (the most beginner of languages), then front-end development (often regarded as simpler, user interface programming), then backend (storage of application data and efficient computation). A natural next piece in that journey was databases, the actual component responsible for the data storage, organization, retrieval, and maintenance. The modern era of human progress is all about information, and the database is right at the core. It enables so much to happen as one of the most fundamental building blocks in software. I also wanted to see how professional, large-scale products are designed, having only done individual or small group projects before. The opportunity to be at a large company would reveal the development habits of a system that supports an excellent product.
It makes sense then that my goals were to: further my understanding of databases and what makes a robust product, and claim my role as a working professional for the first time. These few ideas were not set in stone and were bound to change during my time, but having that mindset to begin provided an anchor as I reached out to grasp new things. In navigating the technical and personal dimensions of this transition, two fronts stood out. This report reflects on Learning Skills and Time Management as the two most formative areas of growth for me.
Reflection 1: Learning Skills
"I am curious about databases as the missing piece of the stack after learning front-end to back-end." That was my response to my supervisor asking why I wanted to take on this role during my interview, given that the experience on my resume was various aspects of touching only the surface of databases. I was ready to learn before even starting the job, but never imagined how much I would pick up during my time on PEY.
I had to self-direct and engage meaningfully with a mature, complex technology and codebase without a clear roadmap. Day one I had already identified areas in our workflow that made me say: "Hey, can't we automate that?" Of course, automating tedious tasks does not mean using the freed up time to do nothing, but rather free up time to do more productive tasks. This ultimately benefits the company, and importantly, allows me to learn more by doing more.
I learned through scripting, benchmarking, debugging, documentation, and unit testing. Even without deep design work, I gained understanding by making a meaningful impact on a variety of projects and tasks. Asked questions, made mistakes. I realized that not only was making mistakes a good way to learn, but potentially the only way to learn. There were problems in my scripts, gaps in my debugging skill. But every time I identified an issue, I was able to address it - exactly how the team makes forward progress too. I was also the Engineering Society Webmaster during this time, where I was in charge of several database reworks; the user perspective and the engineer perspective both came together to me. Thus, I gradually saw the bigger picture of what makes a world-class product, and how the individual fits in.
What was the result? I realized how deep database technology goes: decades of history and design decisions. I read articles and watched videos about databases, which I found myself applying almost immediately. I understood the value of consistency and reliability under the tension of moving fast. Especially during the first half of my co-op, we were on a big mission with a big goal. My work mattered to my team at the office and the team in China was asking me for help too. By wearing many hats, my chance of having that impact is always bigger. I defined myself as a breadth-first learner, exploring widely before committing to depth in one area.
My mindset toward learning has been completely reworked by my time at co-op. I do not think it will be possible for me to see school and even life the same way now. I will continue to broaden rather than specialize prematurely. Knowledge in one area often finds its way around, and that makes sense given I never felt like an expert during my childhood but always had a variety of hobbies. I will embrace uncertainty because making mistakes is not something to avoid but to seek out as the vehicle for real learning.
Reflection 2: Time Management
Early May 2025, I just finished my second year of university and was looking at a full 12.5-month work term with a real commute, a fixed office schedule, and a full life outside of work. 5 days in-office is a lot more fixed than school, but it never made me question that I was not going to just clock in, go home, and sleep. On paper, it seems like a lot to juggle all of this while working the 9-to-5: frisbee, design team, personal projects, cooking, family, going out with interns and friends, and EngSoc duties. In reality, it felt like even more. I had to figure out how to be intentional with time without burning out or feeling like I was only going through the motions. Fortunately, I was used to having a seemingly unlimited number of sidequests from high school. The plan was to take advantage of the fact that everything is interconnected: hobbies help with hobbies/sports -> sports help with learning and motivation -> learning and motivation help you do well in school/work. Of course, I would not be able to match every part of this new challenge to my lived experience, so I would also experiment (make mistakes)!
I tried time blocking and structuring days. I noticed the effect of low-quality stimulation (e.g. YouTube shorts) on my ability to enjoy and be present for the things that actually matter. I would be lying on the couch scrolling, 3/4 way done my dinner, because I was procrastinating on the dishes. Mornings were stolen by my phone. I had to eliminate the digital pings and dings where they clearly were not welcome. So, I built critical habits to protect boredom as a resource. The “peripheral” things (sleep, food, commute, wind-down) directly affect the quality of the main events. I knew by then, from life experiences, the internet, and Atomic Habits by James Clear that although starting is a big part of the battle, it is not the whole battle. I filled in the empty space with deep pondering about whatever was on my mind, but also micro-optimizations of mundane actions (inspired by Minecraft speedrunning), turning that into habit, and replacing scrolling with reading. I read my favourite book during this time, The Will of The Many by James Islington, and improved my overall efficiency by understanding sleep’s importance to the next level by reading Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker.
The benefits from efforts came gradually. However, there were points where I compared the present snapshot with one from weeks prior, and the decreased stress showed. A day remained a constant 24 hours; yet, I found that I did more, career-related and otherwise. These habits and frameworks will carry directly into my second half of university and, I would argue, for the rest of my life. I could have spent years sitting in MY150 being lectured about "the process is part of the solution" without being able to feel it, so it was invaluable to discover for myself that focusing on sustainability and intentionality matters more than output.
