Smartphone savvy pays off

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Senior Brian Phagan begins a position with Microsoft Corp. following graduation. Photo by B.A. Rupert

Now that he’s graduating from Missouri S&T, Brian Phagan is heading off to a new campus in the Seattle metropolitan area. This new campus has soccer fields, outdoor basketball courts and biking trails. Oh, yeah, it’s also the sprawling headquarters of Microsoft Corp.

 Phagan has landed a job as a software development engineer at Microsoft. His team is responsible for the Windows Phone Marketplace. “We make it possible to search for apps, download apps and write reviews on Windows smartphones,” he says.

While pursuing his degree in computer engineering, Phagan interviewed with Garmin during one of S&T’s big career fairs. He got an internship and worked with smartphones.

“The experience with smartphones I gained while at Garmin helped me stand out among other candidates applying to Microsoft,” Phagan says.

The graduating senior has been heavily involved in the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity at Missouri S&T. His favorite class was Dr. Daniel Tauritz’s Evolutionary Computing course. “It teaches the application of ideas like Darwinian evolution and natural selection to solve problems using computers,” says Phagan.

By Lance Feyh

Learn more about career services at Missouri S&T.

Comments

  1. Art Hartt says

    OMG this is my suite-mate!!! Congratulations bro!!