Kenny Rosenberg
Listen to the interview (approx 40 min.) or download it.
Graduated in 2012 with a major in Electronic Production & Design. Principal instrument: piano.
Position: Software Engineer (officially “Consultant”) at Macedon Technologies, a software firm that helps companies build internal tools to manage customer interactions and store data. Most of the 100+ employees are in Kenny’s role, where they not only build the software, but plan and test it, and interact directly with clients to make sure they are getting what they want.
Overview: Kenny’s father worked in IT, and got Kenny into coding as a kid. Kenny came to Berklee, but got heavily into the technology end of the EPD major. He moved to L.A. after graduation, hoping to be a sound designer in Hollywood. To pay bills, got a job at a company that rented out audio/visual equipment to reality TV shows. But the job was underchallenging, and Kenny discovered that it would be a multi-decade process to get established as a sound designer.
Meanwhile, Kenny’s mother had started a job at the University of Delaware, which meant he would be able to attend school for free. After about a year and a half in L.A. he moved home and entered the University of Delaware’s Computer Science program, which he felt had better career prospects. It took him 3 years to get this second Bachelors degree. Toward the end of the program, a school friend was hired by Macedon Technologies, and recommended Kenny for a similar job, so he had his current job lined up for when he graduated in the summer of 2017.
You can see Kenny’s LinkedIn profile here.
Choice Quotes: “I really enjoy the problem solving parts of my job. My company has a great work-life balance, and since folks are young and socially-oriented engineers, people have a lot of common interests. Many of my colleagues have become friends.”
“My last project 80% of my time was spent in meetings; this project is about 90% writing code. It’s nice to get that variation.”
It’s OK to work that placeholder job as long as it doesn’t keep you from what you ultimately want. That said, if it’s hard to take the time to actively search for what you really want because you’re working so much, you should work less, dedicate time, etc, to make sure you push for what you really want. But there’s also no shame in taking a turn and doing something else if that’s right for you.”
“I’m currently on a 9-person team at work. Being on a team in tech is like being in a band–you’re picking up on social cues from clients and coworkers. Berklee enhanced my ability to do that.”
See the full index of successful Berklee alumni.