Google Android Camp comes to London
October 2nd, 2012 | Published in Google Student Blog
The Olympics haven’t been the only exciting event taking place in London this summer. From August 12th - 18th, 23 students descended on the Google London office for a jam-packed week of teaching, hacking, career development, networking and social activities.
The goal of Android Camp is to provide first and second year undergraduate students with exciting and interactive courses in Android development to build development competencies in the Android platform, culminating in application development at the end of the program.
Recently we sat down with one of the happy Campers, Catalina Predoi who studies Computer Science at the University of Edinburgh, to hear what she thought of the program...
Tell us about your experience at Android Camp?
Android Camp was the most fun and intense week of my life. In just a few days I’ve learned a lot about the lifecycle of an app, basic methods, data retrieval, how the xml and java files are binded, etc. and together with my team developed an App from scratch. The best part is that I made new friends that are as passionate about Android as I am.
What made you decide to apply for Android Camp?
I had tried to learn Android development by myself before because I wanted to be able to make my own apps, but without anyone to point me in the right direction I kept getting stuck before I would even really begin. Of course, when I heard about Android Camp I thought it would be a great way to finally get started. And what do you know...I was right!
What was the highlight of Camp for you?
Wow, this is a really tough one. It’s very hard to pick a highlight, between all the surprises, everything I’ve learned, all the fun I had... I guess that for me the highlight would be the last day when we got to see everyone’s presentations, their ideas, and how they brought them to life using what we had learned. Not to mention that the presentations themselves were very entertaining.
What are the next steps for you?
My team and I have decided to continue developing Quertie (our app) in our free time and put it up on Google Play as soon as possible. And personally, I already have my eye on a few open source apps which I want to contribute to.
What advice would you give to people considering applying to Android Camp next year?
Don’t just consider it, do it! Really, apply. You can only benefit from the experience and you’ll have an amazing time. The application process is pretty straightforward, the only thing that I imagine might be holding some of you back is that you don’t want to approach your professor asking for a reference letter. However, think of it this way: sooner or later you will have to ask for one. It’s common practice. And if it won’t be for Android Camp then it will be for some other program or internship you’ll be applying to.
After applying for Android Camp, Catalina went on to apply for the Engineering Trainee Summer Program, where she was accepted and is currently interning in the Google London office!
If you want to follow in the footsteps of Catalina keep an eye on the Google Students page for potential programs or opportunities.
Posted by Jenny McColl and Allison Roarty, Talent and Outreach Programs
The goal of Android Camp is to provide first and second year undergraduate students with exciting and interactive courses in Android development to build development competencies in the Android platform, culminating in application development at the end of the program.
Recently we sat down with one of the happy Campers, Catalina Predoi who studies Computer Science at the University of Edinburgh, to hear what she thought of the program...
Tell us about your experience at Android Camp?
Android Camp was the most fun and intense week of my life. In just a few days I’ve learned a lot about the lifecycle of an app, basic methods, data retrieval, how the xml and java files are binded, etc. and together with my team developed an App from scratch. The best part is that I made new friends that are as passionate about Android as I am.
What made you decide to apply for Android Camp?
I had tried to learn Android development by myself before because I wanted to be able to make my own apps, but without anyone to point me in the right direction I kept getting stuck before I would even really begin. Of course, when I heard about Android Camp I thought it would be a great way to finally get started. And what do you know...I was right!
What was the highlight of Camp for you?
Wow, this is a really tough one. It’s very hard to pick a highlight, between all the surprises, everything I’ve learned, all the fun I had... I guess that for me the highlight would be the last day when we got to see everyone’s presentations, their ideas, and how they brought them to life using what we had learned. Not to mention that the presentations themselves were very entertaining.
What are the next steps for you?
My team and I have decided to continue developing Quertie (our app) in our free time and put it up on Google Play as soon as possible. And personally, I already have my eye on a few open source apps which I want to contribute to.
What advice would you give to people considering applying to Android Camp next year?
Don’t just consider it, do it! Really, apply. You can only benefit from the experience and you’ll have an amazing time. The application process is pretty straightforward, the only thing that I imagine might be holding some of you back is that you don’t want to approach your professor asking for a reference letter. However, think of it this way: sooner or later you will have to ask for one. It’s common practice. And if it won’t be for Android Camp then it will be for some other program or internship you’ll be applying to.
After applying for Android Camp, Catalina went on to apply for the Engineering Trainee Summer Program, where she was accepted and is currently interning in the Google London office!
If you want to follow in the footsteps of Catalina keep an eye on the Google Students page for potential programs or opportunities.
Posted by Jenny McColl and Allison Roarty, Talent and Outreach Programs
