Bronco Spotlight: David Mikovits
Web Developer at the Michigan Health Council
I will be working on ACEMAPP, the flagship product at MHC. It is a web application that helps schools and clinical sites manage staff, students and faculty for clinical education. Some health-related courses are also hosted on ACEMAPP, which helps with the training of new health care professionals. I will be helping to upkeep, update, and develop new functionalities for ACEMAPP as a PHP web developer.
If you had a campus job or internship, how did they impact your career development?
While at WMU, I spent a year as an Intramural Official. While this is an unusual position for someone in my field, I did learn two important lessons. Specifically, dealing with situations quickly and managing conflict. As a web developer, I do not often have to make split-second decisions, but I do need to make decisions calmly and confidently. Making quick, accurate calls as an official helped me to develop this skill. Conflict resolution is a beneficial skill no matter what field you work in, and while I haven’t had to resolve conflict in the workplace yet, I have had experience doing so.
Which of your skills had the biggest impact on your success?
Staying focused and being willing to put in the work were two skills that greatly assisted me throughout my college and professional careers. There were many times I struggled, with school, work, and my personal life. Since I was focused and willing to push myself I was able to overcome these obstacles. My mental resilience allowed me to push myself farther than I thought I could and it led me to reach lofty goals I had set for myself.
What advice do you have for others pursuing a career similar to yours?
Work hard, set goals, and have faith that your work will pay off. If you set difficult, fulfilling goals you will continuously have something to reach for. That will help you to work hard when you feel like you can no longer continue. Times will be hard, and you will likely question if your goals, and all the work you’ve done so far, is actually getting you anywhere. Have confidence that you can debug that program, or develop a more efficient algorithm. You might struggle, you might fail, but you can always persevere if you are willing to put in the work.