From a master's in AI to fully hired at Telenor in 15 months

From theory to production

That transition was exactly what the first few months at Loop Academy were about.

Steffen already knew Python, C++, Java, C# and several of the technologies he had worked with during his studies. He had also worked on everything from explainable AI and language models to API integrations and computer vision.

So the goal at Loop was not to start from scratch.

Instead, the focus was on building on his existing technical skills and making them relevant to the environment he was about to join. Teamwork, modern development practices, code quality, APIs, testing and working with larger codebases became an important part of the transition.

For Steffen, it also meant moving from a study programme heavily focused on AI into a broader software development role.

Matched with Telenor

After the academy period, Steffen joined a development team at Telenor.

He quickly went from assignments and projects at the academy to working on systems used within one of Norway’s largest technology organisations.

His responsibilities have included developing APIs in Java and Kotlin with Spring Boot, managing large volumes of customer data and exploring how AI tools can make software development more efficient.

This is also where his AI background started to play a slightly different role than it did at university.

Steffen does not necessarily spend his days building new machine learning models. Instead, he uses his understanding of AI to become a better developer.

“AI makes me more efficient as a developer. The agents can write a lot of the code, while I can focus more on system design and how the solutions should actually work.”

We believe this is something we will see much more of in the years ahead.

AI skills are about more than developing AI

When Steffen joined us, Artificial Intelligence was his specialisation.

Today, AI is also a tool he uses in everyday software development.

That distinction matters.

We believe the strongest developers of the future will not necessarily be the ones who write every single line of code themselves. They need to understand the systems they are building, assess the quality of what is being produced and know how to use new tools without losing control of architecture, security or quality.

That still requires strong fundamental skills.

Steffen had an unusually strong foundation here as well. The assessments he completed before joining Loop placed him in the 94th percentile for inductive reasoning and the 99th percentile for deductive reasoning.

But potential on its own is not enough. It has to be turned into something that creates real value in a team.

From graduate to colleague

That is perhaps the part of Steffen’s journey we are most proud of.

The goal of Loop Academy is not to keep candidates in a training programme for as long as possible. It is the opposite.

We want them to enter working life quickly, become productive, take on responsibility and eventually become a completely natural part of the team they work with.

In 15 months, Steffen went from graduating with a Master’s degree in AI to becoming a permanent employee at Telenor.

Along the way, he first completed an intensive learning programme at Loop Academy, followed by a full year of real experience as a developer in Telenor’s technology environment.

That is exactly how we believe the transition from university to working life should work.

This is what Loop Academy is meant to be

Steffen’s story is, of course, first and foremost about Steffen.

He came to us with a strong academic background, excellent analytical abilities and experience with demanding AI-related projects. His Master’s degree at UiA included top grades in subjects such as Computer Vision, AI Mathematics, Intelligent Data Management and Pattern Recognition.

But his story also illustrates very clearly why we started Loop Academy.

Companies need talented developers. Universities educate people with enormous potential. Yet the gap between the two can still be unnecessarily large.

Our job is to make that gap smaller.

For Steffen, the journey from graduating with a Master’s in AI to becoming a permanent developer at Telenor took 15 months.

We think that is a pretty good start to a career.