Doing a Little Bit of Everything: Interning as a Remote Data Scientists at Milemarker

Ege Seyithanoglu (Data Science Intern @ MileMarker / InBaltimore Cohort 2022) 

Being an intern is a relatively new experience for me, with the pandemic and everything that has been going on in recent years, it is something that I inevitably had to postpone. As a student majoring in Computer Science and Cognitive Science, I’ve heard all the exciting and unique experiences my friends had over the years. But it is often hard to know what to expect from your own internship experience, and you worry whether you are with the right company, whether you can manage to be impactful, and whether you will come out as a different person. 

Looking at the past 6 weeks of my internship with MileMarker, not only were my expectations blown out of the water, but I can already see the different engineer and student I am becoming day by day. 

What is MileMarker 

MileMarker is a company that develops resident training software for residency programs across United States. It is a unique company in the sense that they are in the education, healthcare, and software industries simultaneously.  

This uniqueness is perhaps the most exciting aspect of being an intern at MileMarker because I know that the technology we are working on is going to impact the lives of many people, not only in terms of the education of residents, but the healthcare provided by those residents as well.   

My Work and Day-to-Day Projects 

Even though I am a Data Science intern, MileMarker is a company that challenges you to try different things and do more, putting their trust in you completely. From the first day of my internship, I immediately felt the support, trust, flexibility, consideration, and passion that MileMarker has, and that has enabled me to do a little bit of everything! 

So far, I have worked on: 

  • Machine Learning modelling 
  • Data manipulation and visualization  
  • Frontend and backend for the MileMarker webapp 

As a Data Science intern, I never expected to be involved with this many different tasks; this level of responsibility is something that I am experiencing for the first time, and I am enjoying it through and through.  

I had a lot of learning to do, and I still do. But this is not an experience I go through alone as the entire team is always pushing on, introducing new technologies and different ideas, learning, and sharing it with everyone else. A fellow intern of mine at MileMarker jokes every now and then that we learn years’ worth of knowledge every week, and I don’t believe I can describe it better than that.   

People at MileMarker 

What makes this internship special is of course not just MileMarker itself, but the people behind it that put so much effort and passion into everything they do.  

Although I have been working remote these past 6 weeks, I never felt disconnected from my team members. Whether it is the numerous scheduled meetings we have throughout the week, or whether it is spontaneous calls and Slack messages, the team is always connected and there for each other so that you are never alone, never unheard. 

Text BoxFrom http://artisansituation.com/storytelling/roots-to-the-table-chef-brown-jbees

I know that all I have been talking about up until now has been work, but the MileMarker team is much more than that. Even with the remote setting, and many team members living across different cities, we are still able to meet in-person for a relaxing afternoon, enjoying lunch (if you ever see a green food truck selling Jamaican food, stop by and taste it) and getting to know each other better. From fellow interns to my supervisors, it is a unique opportunity to have this many mentors and friends all at once! 

A Reflection 

As you might have noticed, I have been enjoying my time at MileMarker and being challenged every day by great people. But the most exciting part is yet to come as every week we undertake more challenging tasks. The next few weeks are perhaps the most critical and the most inspiring, as with all the knowledge and experience we have accumulated, we will make more and more impactful changes to the MileMarker software.  

I am becoming a better engineer day by day, and I am enjoying the opportunity to contribute to technology that can profoundly change people’s lives. I am excited to see how much more I can improve, how much more I can learn, and how much more fun I can have alongside my team members at MileMarker! 

If you are curious about MileMarker, and want to get involved, you can visit their website here. If you want to ask me questions, or just talk with me, feel free to connect anytime through LinkedIn. Thank you for reading! 

By Contributor
Contributor