Mike Corkum

How did you enter this career?

Eons ago, when people still connected to the internet like this, I started a Co-Op position at a local internet provider doing technical support. I worked weekends, and it wasn’t very busy. Once I got tired of playing Quake, I decided I should probably make use of the time and learn something. I started by making just a simple homepage for myself, and then starting building simple tools to make my job easier. I stumbled into programming, and fell in love with it.

Where else have you worked?

When I was 13, I had a job as a Dickee-Dee. It was great because you were allowed to just take as much ice cream as you wanted and it would just come off your pay check. It didn’t last very long though; I realized it wasn’t for me when I ended up owing them money on my first check.

I ended up transitioning the Co-op position (see above) into a part time job, and then eventually to full time. From there, I moved to Alcatel-Lucent (now Nokia) working as a web developer and stayed there for 14 years before coming to Carleton.

What are some of the technologies you have used along the way?

I’m primarily a PHP / DB developer, but okay(ish) with the front-end as well. I love Symfony / Laravel and have a passion for DevOps. I am currently trying to level-up by learning all the fancy JS stuff (ES6 / React / etc).

What are the best things about your job?

The team is the best thing, I love my co-workers. I also love that we constantly push the boundaries of our programming skills and are encouraged to research and learn the latest and greatest tools. This isn’t something I ever experienced while doing freelance / private sector work.

Do you have some exciting projects you are working on right now?

Outside of Carleton I’m currently working on a vegetarian food blog, and on a large scale enterprise workflow application built in Laravel. At Carleton I’m currently working on an architecture overhaul and re-design of our underlying setup.

What music are you listening at the moment?

I am currently listening to the album Young and Courageous by Tides Of Man.

What are you reading at the moment?

I’m more of an audiobook addict. I’m currently listening to The Order of Time by Carlo Rovelli.

What do you do outside of school to amuse yourself?

I play ultimate frisbee, run, play guitar, and walk my dog.

What exciting plans do you have coming up in the next year?

I’m going to try to run a marathon in September. Fingers crossed that I don’t fall apart before then.