Bethany Rentz Bethany Rentz

My Background

I used my first computer when I was ~ 6 years old. My dad bought a trs-80 for home. I started playing text based games, using it to write stories, and learned some BASIC programming. We continued to have computers as I was growing up (I was usually one of the few kids in my class with a computer at home). I have memories of writing small BASIC programs with my Dad on Saturday mornings.

In college, I took a beginning CS programming class and enjoyed it, but decided against being a CS major since my mom told me only nerds were CS majors and they didn't talk to people - I should be a business major since I was good at talking with people. So I became a marketing major and worked part time in the computer lab (with Macintosh's since we had one when I was growing up). I took some computer classes in the business school as electives. And when it came time to get a marketing internship - I was asked by the career counselor to go for an interview as an IBM co-op doing technical support (because they needed to fill the slots).

I was accepted for the IBM co-op and moved to Raleigh, NC for the summer - with very little x86 pc experience. They provided a 2 week training course on computers and doing technical support - where I learned a lot. And then I was on the phones answering technical questions about IBM ThinkPads - I learned a lot during that co-op. I also met other students during the co-op who were MIS majors and the career paths they were considering. They were all very social and personable - not geeks (although we did play networked DOOM on the weekends - which I guess was kind of geeky). So I ended up getting a double-major in Marketing and Management Information Systems and becoming a VB developer after college - which I loved

I have enjoyed my career in technology both as a developer and rounding out my experience as a program manager at Microsoft as a program manager - I am moving back to web and mobile development