How I turned my internship into a full-time job

Welcome to "How it started vs. How it's going," an interview series where we sit down with members of our #FoleonFam to find out more about their Foleon journey, what makes them excited about their work, and the all-important question: what gets them out of bed in the morning?

---

Robijn van Houts joined Foleon in 2022 while she was in the last year of her studies at Codam College . She was part of our Innovation Labs internship program, where together with 4 other colleagues, they brought new ideas to develop further and improve the Foleon editor. Fast-track a couple of months later, and she's a full-time member of our #FoleonFam, as one of our Front-end Developers.

You can find out more about Robijn's journey at Foleon in the interview below.

Hi Robijn, to start, tell us what gets you out of bed in the morning. Are you a coffee or tea person? 

Coffee, definitely! But I'm lucky because I don't need it to get out of bed. I just drink coffee whenever I crave it. 

How did your Foleon journey start? What do you remember about your first week?

I started at Foleon as a member of the Innovation Labs team in February 2022. The Labs team is an internship program focused on validating innovative ideas within the company. The first week was filled with presentations and assignments about working with scrum, agile, lean start-up, etc.

It was very interesting to understand the importance of these concepts. After the first weeks, when everything fell into place, I truly understood the value of working agile. During this time, I also mastered the art of "Dutch directness" regarding clarity over projects.

How is it going? How has your role changed?

My journey has been very exciting so far! The internship finished at the beginning of July, and after I also graduated from Codam College . 💜

On top of my graduation, Foleon gave me the opportunity to continue with the company, for which I'm very thankful. That meant I secured my first job! I've been working as a Front-end Developer at Foleon for about 3 months now.

What do you enjoy most about your new role?

I am learning a lot of new things. As I'm "the rookie," there is still so much to know, especially regarding all the technical aspects. During my internship, the focus was only partially on the coding itself. As a Front-end developer, I can now spend most of my time coding, and I really enjoy it.

What's your favorite thing to do outside of work? 

There are so many things, but I mostly spend time bouldering, hanging out with friends, going to restaurants, and enjoying Amsterdam. It's the city I grew up in, and walking or cycling around calms me down. It's like meditation for me. 😊

How can people make you laugh if you're grumpy? 

Tough question, also a tough task! You'd need an insanely good sense of humor if you dare to try. Take Ricky Gervais as an example for you. 😆

Before we let you go, we'd love to know what content you're currently craving. Any book/podcast/TV series that got you hooked?

Because my work involves staring at a screen almost daily, I avoid any screens in my free time. But I started watching Wednesday on Netflix recently. The Addams family was my favorite movie when I was younger. So, the series sparked my curiosity.

I also finished reading "Klara and the sun," a novel by Kazuo Ishiguro, which I highly recommend!

---

If you're starting an internship now, let this story remind you that you can get recognized! Leverage your strengths, and you can make such opportunities happen.