3 MIN READ
This blog is a part of our Making an Impact series, where we explore MetroStar’s employees, their passions, career paths, and inspirations.
Born and raised in Bloomington, Hasan attended Indiana University Bloomington (IUB) and now works as a .Net Developer at MetroStar.
With a father teaching business management at IUB, Hasan enrolled in the university, earning a Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science and Telecommunications.
Hasan is both creative and technical, so he quickly found a passion for video games as they involve both skills. He learned his friend taught Intro to Video Game Development in the Library Sciences Department and signed up for the course. It was in that class that he learned more about programming. At the time, IUB didn't have a specific degree for video game-based programming, so he continued his degree in computer science, which he felt was similar.
Video game design is an all-encompassing art form. You need art, music, a story, and of course, programming. Hasan asked another friend—a great artist and musical composer—to become his partner for video game creation, and they started to create their own games.
"I wasn't sold on a career in computer science, so for fun, I started producing video game stuff on the side. It allowed me to be creative and practice my coding skills. I learned to write in C++, which is the programming language most large video game companies use," Hasan said.
How do these skills transfer to his role at MetroStar? He has coding knowledge learned during his time at IUB, but he also often uses the creative mindset he let prosper during video game making.
"Being creative helps you use the logic and reasoning needed in programming and transform it into something new and innovative," he said. "Your brain is a muscle, and it works hard to reason through difficult problems, but opening up to the creative side helps you work through things in new ways."
Building a Career at MetroStar
One important lesson Hasan learned early in his career is to become a well-rounded developer. His day-to-day tasks at MetroStar have shifted to involve more Full Stack Developer duties. Hasan enjoys that his role has allowed him to gain experience in both front and back-end tasks.
"If you're a developer, you don't always stick to your title. You must be cross-functional. On my current project, I use more skillsets than my understanding of the .Net Framework."
Hasan was hired a few months before the pandemic and watched as businesses across the nation transitioned to remote environments. He was pleased to see remote work brought a sense of connection with his coworkers outside of Indiana.
"A lot of people are still remote, so even though I'm in Bloomington and not Reston, I don't feel like an outsider. I still feel like I have a connection to the social aspect of work because they've made a lot of culture things virtual-based."
On top of the culture, Hasan enjoys that his work at MetroStar helps agencies' employees focus on critical tasks during their workday.
"My favorite accomplishment so far is supporting my project because I took tasks that were tedious, and I automated them. It feels good to save time and money but also to make it possible for someone to tackle the more worthwhile tasks because the trivial tasks are automated."
Hasan advises up-and-coming developers to be excited about the impact their role could have on people, learn new skills often, and become better communicators.
"It can be tempting to stay in your own world and figure things out by yourself but being able to let go of that mindset and reach out about issues that arise will help you move forward on your tasks. You don't want to take a day or two to figure something out if someone on your team could have shown you how to complete it in five minutes," Hasan said. "We're blessed being here at MetroStar where everyone is so friendly and happy to help."
The Bloomington office where Hasan’s work is based is looking to hire bright and tech-savvy professionals. Think you could be a great fit? Check out MetroStar's open roles.
