Full-Stack Developer (Student Organiser)

Introduction

The student internship program administered by the Research Computing Platform at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute (WEHI) has been strategically designed to accommodate a substantial number of student participants, typically exceeding 20 students, during each of its three annual intakes. Given the considerable scale of this initiative, a prototype web application has been initially developed to facilitate the program’s operations. However, it is recognized that there is room for enhancement and refinement of the current web application.

It is imperative to consider a comprehensive evaluation of the existing web application to identify areas where improvements and optimizations can be implemented. This critical endeavor aligns with the overarching goal of ensuring that the internship program at WEHI continues to provide an efficient and streamlined experience for both students and program administrators.

To this end, an in-depth analysis of the web application’s functionality, user interface, and overall user experience is warranted. This evaluation should encompass an examination of user feedback, performance metrics, and industry best practices in web application development. Subsequently, a plan for improvement and enhancement can be devised, addressing any identified shortcomings or areas of potential enhancement.

Moreover, it is essential to foster a collaborative and inclusive approach that engages stakeholders, including students, faculty, and IT professionals, in the process of refining the web application. By harnessing the collective expertise and insights of these individuals, we can ensure that the resultant improvements align with the specific needs and goals of the student internship program at WEHI.

The ideal candidates will leverage their backgrounds in process improvement/onboarding, Python/Flask, or general full-stack web development to contribute to a multi-disciplinary team.

Duties while on placement

The Full-Stack Developer Intern role will:

• Documenting how to setup and run a prototype using synthetic data,
• Identifying problem areas that could be reviewed,
• Reviewing code and improving speed issues,
• Reviewing UX and UI,
• Brainstorming and prototyping solutions of ways to reduce maintenance costs, and
• Suggest other options and prototype as needed.

Skills and Pre-requisites:

We are aiming to build a multi-disciplinary team where each person would have at least one of these skill sets:

• basic knowledge or ability to learn quickly Python/Flask/Javascript/CSS,
• basic knowledge or ability to learn quickly full-stack web development, and Linux command-line
• basic knowledge or ability to learn quickly high-level process improvement/onboarding
• basic knowledge or ability to learn quickly organisational, project management, and communication skills

All people in this multi-disciplinary team should:

• have the ability to synthesise data, understand software usability, and critically analyse code to identify and address performance issues,
• be motivated to work alongside a diverse team, sharing ideas and tackling challenges collectively,
• be able to tolerate or learn to tolerate complexity, and
• be able to tolerate or learn to tolerate ambiguity.

Benefits for students

The benefits for students whilst undertaking the internship include:

• The student will gain practical Software Engineering experience with potential exposure to Flask, Virtual Machines, and how to improve business workflows.
• The student will gain understanding of how real-world software is assessed, developed and how priorities and requirements are established within a research environment.
• The student will have an opportunity to self-direct and be proactive in their approach to a new environment.

Further Reading

• Student Organiser Wiki