UC computer science student co-ops with FOX Sports
Co-op student blends interests in computer science, business, sports and writing
Like many students, the top-ranked cooperative education (co-op) program led Hannah Laman to the University of Cincinnati. Laman, a fifth-year computer science student, has tackled co-op positions ranging from working in software delivery systems, to data analysis, to sports analytics. Through co-op, the College of Engineering and Applied Science gives students the opportunity to gain real-world work experience and test out various roles in their chosen major before they graduate.
Twins Hannah and Alex Laman are both University of Cincinnati engineering students. Photo/Provided
"I was good at math in high school and thought it was a skill I should use. I wanted to do engineering but also wanted the theoretical aspect of it. I took a coding class in high school, so computer science felt like a natural choice," Laman said.
UC's co-op program was a draw for her twin brother, Alex. When it came time for both to decide where they were going to college, they didn't really discuss their options with each other. Whether it be the power of that twin connection, or the promise of co-op, they both independently decided UC was the right fit.
Laman got a head start on co-op. While most students' first co-op position is during their second year, Laman opted to spend the summer after her first year working with 84.51 as an infrastructure and cloud technology co-op.
"I was a little unsure about my major at the time and wanted to figure it out sooner rather than later, so I applied even though I was younger than a traditional co-op, and they accepted me," she said.
In this role, she focused on traditional software engineering, including working on data pipelines and software delivery systems. Laman shared she did well with the work but ultimately realized it wasn't what she wanted to pursue long term.
My co-op at AMEND is what led me to pursue my MBA.
Hannah Laman Fifth-year CEAS student
For her next two co-op semesters, Laman worked at AMEND Consulting, a small firm in Cincinnati. During her first semester there, she served as an applied data analyst, working with clients in the manufacturing and retail industries to provide operations and data cleanup consulting. When she returned for her second semester, she shifted to an operations analyst role.
"My time at AMEND is what led me to pursue my MBA," Laman said. "I really liked the business side of things, but didn't want to let go of engineering, so I combined them with the ACCEND program."
ACCEND, the Accelerated Engineering Degree Program, enables students to earn both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree within five years at UC. Students can apply for ACCEND after completing two academic semesters. For Laman, the program not only gives her the opportunity to earn two degrees in a short period, but also to combine her interests in both engineering and business.
Hannah Laman used networking and connections she had to help get her co-op job at FOX Sports. Photo/Provided
After declaring for the ACCEND program and beginning to search for her next co-op position, Laman took an unexpected turn into the sports industry. She spent nearly two years as a sports analytics and search engine optimization co-op at FOX Sports’ Cincinnati office, where her role incorporated two complementary areas.
On the analytics side, Laman focused on internal reporting to leadership, using software tools to tell a visual story through data. She analyzed advertising revenue, assessed the performance of various placements on the app and on the website, and evaluated monetization of links in published articles. As an avid sports fan, working with sports data allowed her to combine her love for sports with her passion for computer science.
The other half of her role centered on SEO. Laman wrote SEO-focused stories for a FOX website. While this kind of work is unconventional for an engineer, Laman shared that she told her boss at FOX that she was interested in expanding her experience and gaining new skills outside of traditional software engineering.
“It was really cool to be able to write under the FOX Sports name,” Laman said. “That’s something I never thought I’d be doing as an engineer.”
Laman’s path to FOX Sports was unconventional as well, coming through a connection she made through a nonprofit she and her twin brother founded at just 8 years old. The organization, Adopt a Book, is dedicated to donating new and gently used books to children in need.
Hannah and her twin brother Alex Laman started a nonprofit organization, Adopt a Book, when they were just eight years old. Photo/Adopt a Book
“My brother and I loved to read the newspaper as kids and saw a story about a school in Cincinnati that had a funding cut and lost their library,” she said. “We grew up going to our local libraries and couldn’t imagine a life without access to books.”
This inspired them to start a small book drive with their friends and family for the school that had lost their library. It was so successful that donation requests didn’t stop and, with the help of their parents, Adopt a Book was turned into a 501c3 nonprofit organization.
“To date, we’ve donated over 250,000 books to hundreds of schools, organizations, and programs serving children,” she said. “We have also established reading spaces in community centers, sponsored a Little Free Library along the Loveland Bike Trail, and partnered with local businesses and schools for book drives and fundraisers.”
It was during one of these book drives that she met her future boss at FOX. He and his wife were donating books when Laman began talking to them. During their conversation, he mentioned that he worked at FOX Sports, and Laman asked for his contact information. It wasn’t until a year or so later that she reached out to him to ask if there were any open opportunities for her.
“The way I got my job at FOX was a great use of networking,” she said.
Throughout her co-op experiences, Laman has gathered valuable insights about what she wants her future career to look like. After graduation, she will be joining Garmin as a project manager in the engineering business development team. She will be relocating to Kansas City and said she is excited to take what her time at UC has taught her and begin her career.
Featured image at top: Hannah Laman's co-op experiences helped her decide what direction to pursue in her career. Photo/Provided
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