A roundabout way to get smarter
If you can't make progress with your studies, an apprenticeship can offer alternatives. The LRZ trains IT specialists. Photo: Adobe
From university to vocational training and back to university: Cristian Buschermöhle likes to take detours to achieve his goals - because they make him smarter, more successful and bring him into contact with lots of interesting people.
An open look, a cheerful smile, a firm handshake: Cristian Buschermöhle is one hundred percent present. He responds immediately to his counterpart. He answers the first questions, asks some of his own, comments on what has been said, and then quickly delves deeper, on a political and personal level. He is informed, well-read and very interested. It is not difficult to find common ground with him or to feel comfortable in his presence. His colleagues at the Leibniz Supercomputing Centre (LRZ) also appreciate this: “Cristian is one of the nicest people I know," says Alkin Sarikaya, who recently completed his training as an IT specialist in systems integration with Cristian. What I like most about him is that he is open and helpful and likes to share information and wisdom. He has been extremely helpful with IT issues, but he has also helped me with topics such as politics, history and social affairs.
An award for top grades and social behaviour
He received straight A's for his school work and exam results. These marks earned Cristian a lot of praise, as well as an award from the government of Oberbayern for his "commitment to the integration of fellow students". Too much credit, in the opinion of the newly qualified IT specialist: "It goes without saying that I help out whenever I can," he says with a shrug. "In my vocational class, I helped a Moroccan girl whose storyfascinated me - she had left her country after eight years of school because she wanted to learn more, and she spoke six languages. I found this ambition, this quest, remarkable." So, on the way home, he explained technical terms and learning content, helped with questions about work and training, and in return was told many stories from long years of travelling from Morocco to Spain, France, Romania, Italy and Germany.
Cristian Buschermöhle (right) at the award ceremony at the Städtische vocational school
in Munich for IT systems integration. Photo: BS FISI
Born in Hamburg in 1995, he grew up bilingually with a father who had come to Germany from Brazil. Even as a child, he wrote letters to authorities and helped with applications: “My father speaks German very well, but writing is more difficult for him. Cristian also became responsible for the IT in the house. He built his first computer in sixth grade, at the age of 12, and then took care of the modem, internet and telephone connections. My father didn't think we needed computer technology, and he still thinks the Internet should be abolished,” Cristian says with a laugh. But I was allowed to take care of the IT at home, and I was very behind the times when it came to new routers and other accessories. When he talks about his childhood, his fascination with IT and technology, or 'the zeros and ones and little currents that move huge amounts of information and data', it is surprising that computer science or electrical engineering were not even on the agenda when he was choosing a career: 'I never saw it as something special, IT was everyday life,' he says thoughtfully. If I had thought differently, I probably would have gone straight into it and studied computer science or something like that.
Bad advice, tough start
But after graduating from high school and a long trip to Asia, Cristian enrolled in engineering on the advice of his career counsellor. His good grades in math and physics spoke in favour of the subject, which would open up good prospects and different career fields. “Engineer - that somehow sounded like Goethe's Faust and the question of what holds the world together," says Cristian, "I'm curious, I want to discover new things on this planet and I like to know how things work. The Technical University of Munich (TUM) attracted the Hamburg native with its worldwide reputation, more points for the elite interdisciplinary degree programme and, last but not least, school friends had already moved to Munich: plenty of motivation to study in Munich and to study engineering.
Nevertheless, things turned out differently: Mechanical engineering wasn't my thing, it was too formulaic and numbers-heavy," says the IT specialist. Even switching to industrial engineering didn't really stimulate his desire to learn, read and gain knowledge, although Cristian showed perseverance and continued to study for years until he decided to drop out. The LRZ offered an alternative to studying: Cristian had been working there at the service desk, earning money for his studies. When he quit his job and mentioned in passing that he was now looking for a job or an apprenticeship, he immediately secured an training place for himself. "It was a big change," says the IT specialist, who likes to play on the computer or relax by reading fantasy books. Suddenly I had sports and other subjects again, you don't have homework and vocational school takes place every three months for a fortnight, but I felt really young.
He completed his training in 19 months. He left a lasting impression on his trainers and superiors: "I am impressed by his openness and honesty", says Eda Seval-Munke, head of the LRZ Service Desk. Cristian addressed problems directly and was always interested in finding solutions, which is constructive and professional and has contributed greatly to a positive working atmosphere. She also appreciates the Hamburg native's team spirit, which also impressed trainer Alessandro Podo: "In all tasks, Cristian thought not only about himself, but also about the group. For the trainee projects, he thought about how the tasks should be planned and documented so that everyone could benefit from the shared knowledge. Analytical thinking, a focused approach and a meticulous search for information are also well received by the others.
Finding the right course
It is to be expected that he will continue to roam the Internet in the coming years, always on the lookout for news about server technologies and IT security: "These are and were my favourite topics during my training, so it's great that I ended up in Windows server operations at the LRZ," he says. "It is also about how I can protect servers from attacks. " Even in his spare time, he likes to keep an eye out for reports of security incidents or zero-day exploits, news of vulnerabilities that hackers or cyber criminals exploit to compromise IT or access data. "It's fascinating when, as with Crowdstrike last summer, a failed software update causes computer systems to crash en masse," says Cristian. “A small bug can have such a big impact.”
To gain an even better understanding of how IT works, and in particular how malfunctions, failures and attacks work, Cristian will soon be going back to university. Together with his colleague Alkin Sarikaya, he plans to enrol in a distance learning course in IT forensics at the Wismar University of Applied Sciences: “Detecting system and security vulnerabilities before others can exploit them - experimenting and analysing them - that's my big dream.” The fact that a colleague and friend will be studying with him will make things easier: “Reading about theories or studying isn't really my thing, and it will certainly be difficult to keep up with a degree course while working,” says Cristian. “But if you can share it with someone, it creates positive pressure, you can't let yourself and the other person down.” “Give and take”, says Alkin: “Studying will be a walk in the park for Cris, I hope I can continue to benefit from his knowledge, and my job will be to help him with things like entertainment, discipline and encouragement.”
It seems that Cristian has arrived and, after a few roundabout tours, has found his personal field of work: “Detours are not bad at all,” he sums up the last few years. “When you run straight towards a goal, you don't notice so much in life, I've got to know so many people and their stories and I've been able to learn from them for myself.” (vs/LRZ)
Cristian Buschermöhle, IT specialist at LRZ