懂色帝

For the past two years, balancing work with a class schedule has not been easy for fourth-year computer science student Alisha Karim. When she discovered the chance to alternate an academic semester with full-time work through the College of Engineering and Computing Sciences鈥� cooperative (co-op) education program, she jumped at the opportunity.

鈥淔or once, I could give all my energy to one role and really immerse myself in the work,鈥� says Karim, who worked in Northwell Health鈥檚 software development department from June through December. 鈥淭hat focus helped me grow more confident, and it gave me the space to truly understand what working in a technical role feels like without splitting my attention between school and work.鈥�

Northwell Health is New York鈥檚 largest healthcare provider. At its New Hyde Park, N.Y., location, Karim thrived in her position, proving to herself that she can operate in and contribute meaningfully to complex, real-world environments. Her role focused on building automation solutions and improving internal operational systems. Karim also regularly met with other teams from local hospitals to discuss their inquiries and desired workflow improvements. During those meetings, she learned about the teams鈥� challenges, identified bottlenecks, and discussed potential technical solutions. From there, her tasks included designing, building, testing, and refining systems before presenting them to the client.

鈥淓ach day required both technical problem-solving and clear communication,鈥� Karim says. With an average workday of reviewing client inquiries, scheduling meetings, working on project drafts, and cooperating with the web services team for projects and updates, Karim was frequently rewarded by seeing the tools she created used in streamlining hospital workflows and supporting employees鈥� daily responsibilities.

One such moment will live in her memory forever. Karim worked on building and refining a system that logs when a hospital is placed on redirection (non-urgent patients are rerouted to other facilities) through the New York City Fire Department. After multiple rounds of troubleshooting and adjustments, the system was fully implemented for hospital staff to automatically track redirection data instead of manually logging details in what were already high-pressure situations. The data also provided clearer visibility into patterns, which allowed leadership to advocate for changes and improvements to the greater redirection system.

鈥淚鈥檝e always been big on solving problems,鈥� says Karim, who is also an entrepreneur and co-founder of the startup . She hopes to use her computer science degree to build and innovate technology that strengthens healthcare systems. 鈥淚 naturally start thinking about how something could run more efficiently. I truly enjoy finding practical solutions that make people鈥檚 work easier and more organized.鈥�

Citing her co-op as a 鈥減erfect fit,鈥� Karim felt like she naturally belonged in an environment where technology is used to solve operational challenges in healthcare. She had the technical skills necessary for her duties, but her hands-on work taught her lessons that a textbook couldn鈥檛, such as becoming comfortable working through ambiguity, mapping out logic, and thinking several steps ahead, as well as trusting her instincts enough to dive confidently into unfamiliar territory .

鈥淢y co-op experience gave me a renewed sense of energy and excitement about my future in tech.鈥�