According to the latest “Invest in Lithuania” data, over 36 thousand people work in the country. software developers, and in 2022 alone. Settled in Lithuania 21 a new technology company. Lukas Mieliauskas, a student of Program Systems at Kaunas University of Technology (KTU), is convinced that artificial intelligence (AI) will not replace programmers in the near future, because in order to pursue a career in this field, both interdisciplinary and creativity are required.
“Artificial intelligence can provide guidelines for the programmer to work with, but it cannot yet create programs for it. Programming requires a person who can read the codes created by robotic systems and understand what the artificial intelligence is writing,” says L. Mieliauskas.
Today, a specialist in application systems cannot limit himself to performing standard tasks and extensive knowledge of modern programming languages. According to Lukas, representatives of this specialty need a broader approach: “Programmers need to be creative, which allows them to look at problems from a different angle and reduce a program code consisting of 500 lines to just 100 lines, and this requires creativity.”
Pavlo Vilkhovyi, a Ukrainian studying computer engineering at KTU, agrees that computer science covers many fields, so a broad view of the world and the ability to apply creative skills in this field expands the possibilities of these specialists.
Taking into account the need for various competences in the IT field, Pavlo does not stop improving and is additionally interested in various programming languages - Java, React native, Cypress and Dart.
“At the moment, I devote most of my time to mobile application development and I intend to link my future with mobile application development,” says P. Vilkhovyi about his career plans.
The most important quality is patience and practice
In informatics and programming, as in many fields, rather important qualities are patience, practice, communication. These qualities can be developed in various ways, meanwhile, in order to cultivate his communication skills, Program Systems student Lukas joined the KTU theater studio “44”. As he says, theater is a discipline that provides not only better self-knowledge, but also many other lessons and skills that are useful beyond the stage.
“By acting in the theater, I can better understand my emotions, develop more fluent oratorical skills, and be able to express myself more clearly and interestingly.” These are just some of the qualities that I indirectly influence my future career by improving,” says L. Mieliauskas.
In the theater, Lukas likes to empathize with another personality the most. “That’s how I break away from “Luke” and become a different person. Besides, I don’t feel fear on stage, but a pleasant excitement that I don’t find anywhere else,” he says.
In order to develop patience, Pavlo, a computer engineering student, takes up another painstaking hobby – origami. “As a child, I received a large book about origami as a gift from my father. It was the first step towards my hobby,” he says about the beginning of a new hobby.
At first he learned by trying to fold out every figure or animal in the book. Day by day he began to like this activity more and more, so the skilled guy made several roses, dogs, birds, catapults and even bracelets.
“It’s hard at first, a lot of paper gets damaged, but the first time you make a swan perfectly, it’s an amazing feeling. I believe that the patience and practice I have developed in making origami can be useful in my future career. It’s just that I need some of these qualities in areas where everything is new to me,” smiles Pavlo.
Opportunities in foreign countries
P. Vilkhovyi has already managed to test his strengths in the field of informatics and use the skills he acquired in his spare time in the Czech Republic. In a foreign country, he was most surprised by the grading system. “In Kaunas, before writing the final exam, I should submit a certain amount of laboratory work. Meanwhile, in the Czech Republic, I remember only one team project that I did,” says Pavlo.
According to the guy, both in the Czech Republic and in Lithuania, universities offer very interesting study programs with professionals in their field who have unique teaching skills. In his free time, Pavlo tried to explore the country, its culture, and most of all, its architecture. By the way, the Czech Republic surprised Pavlo with the pace of his life. “I studied in Brno, so the city was always full of fun, life and interesting people,” observes the student.
Although Pavlo’s colleague L. Mieliauskas has not yet gone abroad to gain experience, he is currently learning Spanish and hopes that in the future, knowing the language will help him establish foreign contacts.
“My current goal is to learn a foreign language and apply it in work practice. Spanish is a very popular language in the world, so it has a lot of practical applications. I am interested in Mexico and I really want to learn the specific dialect and jargon of this country,” says Lukas.
Lukas points out that the Spanish language is sonorous and melodious, while expressiveness distinguishes it from the Lithuanian language. “I’m actually surprised that these languages have a lot of similarities, because sentences and words use similar constructions,” says the boy.
A supportive environment and help in the most difficult moments
However, even with many opportunities abroad, the boys stay to study in Lithuania. Ukrainian P. Vilkhovyi, while choosing a study program and the country where he would like to study, was impressed by Lithuania, and especially Kaunas, by its friendly and freely-communicating residents.
“In Lithuania, the people around me welcomed me in a friendly manner, and I easily made friends at the university. I know that I can always count on support from both other students and teachers. They help even in the most difficult situations, and the most impressive thing is the support of Lithuanians”, says the KTU student.
It is true that at the moment Pavlo has not yet firmly decided whether he will stay in Kaunas after his studies, but he does not hide that it was his studies in Lithuania that gave him the most opportunities. “I know that I will choose the best option, whether here or abroad. I can be happy that I learned everything in Lithuania that I will be able to apply in the future”, he notes.
According to Pavlo, it doesn’t matter in which country a person studies computer science, the most important thing is how he feels while studying. “I think that the main goal of a university is not only to teach a student, but also to teach how to learn, how to improve and how to deal with information after finding it,” adds the Ukrainian.
L. Mieliauskas, who is studying program systems, decided to stay in Kaunas after graduation because he has better living conditions here. He really likes the logistics of the city of Kaunas – public transport and shopping centers seem to be close at hand.
“When choosing a university, of course, the fact that KTU has one of the best training of IT specialists in Lithuania was also important. On the other hand, if you want a compact, cozy city with a well-developed public transport infrastructure, you won’t be disappointed if you choose Kaunas”, Lukas is happy.
Tags: KTU students field understand codes
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