{"id":29797,"date":"2018-07-02T16:39:17","date_gmt":"2018-07-02T16:39:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.microsoft.com\/?p=410460"},"modified":"2018-07-02T16:39:17","modified_gmt":"2018-07-02T16:39:17","slug":"chance-at-greatness-former-army-paratrooper-lands-at-kronos-after-graduating-from-microsoft-software-systems-academy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/2018\/07\/02\/chance-at-greatness-former-army-paratrooper-lands-at-kronos-after-graduating-from-microsoft-software-systems-academy\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Chance at greatness\u2019: Former Army paratrooper lands at Kronos after graduating from Microsoft Software & Systems Academy"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"Army
Army paratrooper Ashish Singh after a jump in Italy. <\/em> <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

To Ashish Singh, your network matters. More specifically, your support network.<\/p>\n

For the paratrooper medic turned software engineer, that network has always helped him navigate life\u2019s twists and turns. It\u2019s what brought him from Nepal to America when he was 17 years old. It\u2019s what led him to enlist in the U.S. Army. And it\u2019s why he chose to work at Kronos Incorporated<\/a>\u2014a global leader in workforce management and human capital management software\u2014after graduating from Microsoft Software & Systems Academy<\/a> (MSSA). The rewards have been consistent, and hard-won.<\/p>\n

A solid educational foundation eluded Ashish in childhood. \u201cWe could barely afford my school,\u201d he says, \u201cand because of political unrest, the school was shut down often.\u201d His mother dreamed of sending Ashish, her only child, to study in America. Eventually, in January 2008, her dream was realized when Ashish and two of his friends were accepted at Ferris State University in Michigan. They arrived with almost nothing\u2014save one another. Even now, Ashish mostly remembers feeling overwhelmed.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy English was horrible. People would ask me to repeat myself about a thousand times a day,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Determined to make the most of his opportunity no matter the obstacles, Ashish began to study manufacturing engineering. But after a couple years\u2014during which he pivoted his studies toward computer science and earned a scholarship to study computer engineering\u2014Ashish couldn\u2019t shake the feeling that there was more he wanted to do.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d always wanted to do something great,\u201d he says, \u201cbut throughout that time, I felt like I was studying for my family rather than for myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then, with just one semester remaining in his degree program, Ashish stumbled upon what seemed to him a chance at that greatness: The U.S. Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest (MAVNI) program.<\/p>\n

Originally established to enlist foreign nationals in the U.S. military to bolster its foreign language capabilities and improve cultural diversity, the MAVNI program was temporary, Ashish knew; it had been suspended once before. So he chose not to risk waiting until after graduation to enlist. He even hoped to pursue computer engineering after enlisting.<\/p>\n

But when a physical exam revealed that Ashish was colorblind and therefore disqualified from pursuing IT in the Army, he was unsure of what to do. He chatted with his bunkmates and discovered they were hoping to become paratroopers. Before long, Ashish was training with them to come to the rescue of their fellow soldiers around the world.<\/p>\n

\"Ashish
Ashish and Army Sgt. Mario Da Silva exploring Capri while stationed in Italy.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Stationed in Italy, Ashish traveled and trained with allies throughout Europe. Alongside the intensity, Ashish found solidarity and a sense of pride. With support from family, friends, and fellow soldiers, he was doing his \u201csomething great.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then, after a bad jump on a training route over Germany resulted in a back injury, it came time for Ashish to consider his own health. He and his wife\u2014whom he\u2019d met and married in Latvia\u2014relocated to Fort Bragg in North Carolina. But, despite limiting his physical activity, Ashish\u2019s pain worsened. His wife encouraged him to consider other options, and so his thoughts returned to software engineering.<\/p>\n

Through his network of friends and former classmates, Ashish learned about MSSA, a Microsoft Military Affairs<\/a> program launched in 2013 to help U.S. service members and veterans transition from the military into technology careers. He applied and was accepted into the second MSSA cohort at Fort Bragg, which taught Cloud Application Development.<\/p>\n

Now available at 14 military locations nationwide, MSSA can graduate up to 1,000 participants each year. Graduates are guaranteed interviews with Microsoft and\/or some of the program\u2019s 280 hiring partners. On average, graduates land IT jobs with annual salaries starting at $70,000.<\/p>\n

Amid the demanding coursework, Ashish once again found value in the camaraderie of his cohort. \u201cEven more than the course, we learned from each other,\u201d he says. \u201cWe helped each other out, we created and implemented projects together, we attended meetups together.\u201d<\/p>\n

They even prepared for interviews together. Ashish applied and interviewed at several of the program\u2019s hiring partners, but Kronos stood out from the start for its culture, which has earned it accolades around the world, including Fortune magazine\u2019s \u201c100 Best Companies to Work For,\u201d Glassdoor\u2019s \u201cBest Places to Work,\u201d and Forbes\u2019 \u201cAmerica\u2019s Best Employers.\u201d When it came to deciding which job offer to accept, the community appeal won out.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe recently asked our interns to count how many potlucks, cakes, dinners, and other activities we\u2019ve had,\u201d Ashish says. \u201cThey lost count.\u201d<\/p>\n

But even better, he says, is the support to grow professionally. As an MSSA hiring partner, Kronos is committed to helping participants like Ashish effectively transition into a rewarding career\u2014offering support and guidance they might not receive elsewhere. The result is a close partnership that is helping to address the need for more skilled workers in technology while also equipping transitioning service people to thrive in a digital world.<\/p>\n

\"Ashish
Ashish touring Capri, Italy, with his friends.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cVeterans across all branches of the military have honed exceptional skills and abilities that are in high demand for technology companies\u2014including paying careful attention to detail, executing in a high-stress environment, and collaborating to fulfill a mission,\u201d said Kristen Brown, vice president of global talent acquisition at Kronos. \u201cYet translating what they\u2019ve learned and what they\u2019ve done into corporate speak doesn\u2019t always come naturally in the transition to civilian life. Programs that help veterans develop business-world confidence and open the doors to corporate opportunities are invaluable.\u201d<\/p>\n

In his role as a front-end developer, Ashish is generally focused on application modules that impact user experience. But he\u2019s taking advantage of the opportunity to grow in multiple ways. For example, given\u00a0his background and broad interest in coding, his mentor also gives him opportunities to work on back-end scripting. And to cap it off, he finished his last semester of school, earning his computer science degree online in May 2018.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith everything going on, I thought I would never graduate,\u201d he says. \u201cBut nobody in my family has a degree, so I wanted to be the first one and make my mom proud.\u201d He\u2019s looking forward to walking in the graduation ceremony in December 2018.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to walk, just for her,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Because in the end, it\u2019s always been a team effort.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Army paratrooper Ashish Singh after a jump in Italy. To Ashish Singh, your network matters. More specifically, your support network. For the paratrooper medic turned software engineer, that network has always helped him navigate life\u2019s twists and turns. It\u2019s what brought him from Nepal to America when he was 17 years old. It\u2019s what led […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":29798,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[153,50],"class_list":["post-29797","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-microsoft-news","tag-military-affairs","tag-recent-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29797","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29797"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29797\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29798"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29797"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29797"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29797"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}