Mika — iOS Software Developer Co-op at BlackBerry
Experienced Japan iOS engineer (IBM ~4 years including pivot to engineering, then ~2 years at Yappli) who landed a BlackBerry Co-op after a college path and roughly a year of Canadian job search.
iOSソフトウェアデベロッパー · BlackBerry
Profile
Mika is an iOS software developer who secured a Co-op role at BlackBerry in Canada after prior Japan engineering experience. Age band: 20s (attributes).
Current role
Co-op iOS software developer at BlackBerry (software-focused company; exact team/city not stated in the article).
Japan experience
Prior experience (経験者) as an iOS software developer. University major was international economics (not IT). Joined IBM as an IT consultant after graduation; spent about 4 years at IBM, shifting into engineering around year 2 after feeling under-equipped for upstream requirements work without deep IT knowledge. Before focusing on iOS, did server-side work and a little web frontend; also ~2 months of side work as an app architect. Moved to Yappli as an iOS developer (iOS-only role there) and worked there about 2 years. Contacted Frog around March 2022 (around when leaving IBM) but deferred overseas plans to build more iOS experience first.
Path to Canada / North America
College route. Arrived Canada November 2023; started college January 2024. Chose school over WH alone for visa flexibility and a backup plan. Did NPO iOS volunteering (found via LinkedIn) and weekly events; also took Japan freelance work while studying. Job search took nearly a year; document screening improved after about six months, but student 20-hour work limits blocked some offers.
Outcome
BlackBerry Co-op offer around late October 2024 (~1 year after arrival). No official statement in the interview about a post-internship extension.
Based on Frog’s Japanese-language interview. English summary for scanning (partners / employers). Original interview (Japanese)