The Living Lab is like having an IT job in the field. You are pushed and pulled in many different directions with many different projects. You are thrown into situations that need to be figured out. The guidance is there, but nothing beats that feeling of figuring it out by yourself.
Aaron Hook
The Living Lab has been a great experience for me throughout the semester. I worked with some technologies that were previously unfamiliar and consulted with a client to develop a good solution to implement for them. Working in many unfamiliar and uncomfortable situations truly pushes you, and I believe it’s the best way to foster growth in any profession. So for the Living Lab to give that opportunity is a great thing.
Nathanial William Adams
As a non-traditional student who has 25 years experience in the working world, I value Living Lab because it teaches soft skills in addition to furthering our understanding of technology. The projects we work on are computer based, but the most important lessons are work ethic, initiative, self-sufficiency, dealing with work-related frustrations, teamwork, and time management.
Vicky Smith
The Living Lab experience has helped me see what it can be like in the real world.
David C. Bryant
The Living Lab has been an enjoyable experience. It has provided new skills while strengthening old ones and has given me insight into the technical workplace.
Wendell Matthew Klene
The Living Lab was a life-changing experience, because this is how I got my first IT job. I gained knowledge and hands-on experience through contributions on a variety of projects for Simon Property Group. You never know all the solutions for all the problems, which makes it challenging and interesting. I went for another semester in the Living Lab, because I enjoy learning new techniques that will be valuable in the future.
Yan Grishin
The Living Lab is helpful because it exposed me to an environment similar to one I would face in a real IT job.
Abdulrahaman Ahmed Banjar
I have definitely determined that this class could be just like a real life IT position. You never know how long a project might take, even a simple task. I’ve had some tasks take only a couple of hours, and I worked on one project for 36 hours straight. But I feel that Living Lab is helping to prepare me for what will come in the professional world.
Eugene Gephart
Living Lab has been a great experience for me to learn daily obligations to maintain a healthy network. I’ve learned independent research is a very important process before network testing is conducted. I’ve also learned that you must have a process to monitor packets flowing in and out of the network. Working with packet sniffing programs has been helpful. In a team environment, I’ve also learned to install network cables, mount and install switches, and test networks.
Charles Alan Stone
I have gained a lot of useful experience with Mac OS X administration, such as performance monitoring, maintenance, user and group creation, remote and command line administration, and load testing. It has challenged my skill set, and it will be very beneficial for me in the future.
Joseph Warren Balazs
