My Experience and Learnings as a Backend Developer Intern at Node Eight – David Ekong

David Ekong is a 2nd-year Robotics Engineering student at Academic City University College, graduating in 2026. During the last summer holidays, he had the opportunity to intern with us at Node Eight. In this spotlight, he has shared with us invaluable lessons from his internship experience.

By David Ekong.

‘My experience and learnings as a Backend Developer Intern at Node Eight. My internship, which lasted for three months, provided me with an opportunity to delve into backend development using PHP and Laravel, technologies I had not previously worked with. Despite the initial challenges, this experience was invaluable and significantly enhanced my skills and understanding of backend development within a fintech context’.

Node Eight is an innovation foundation building digital applications in their venture studio to solve social challenges in Africa.

Throughout the internship, I focused on learning and applying PHP and Laravel for backend development, understanding how to develop a cohesive backend system, gaining practical experience in working with SQL, and using Laragon for my development environment. Initially, my journey with PHP and Laravel was challenging. It took considerable effort to grasp the fundamentals and learn how to create a well-structured backend. My supervisor, Mr. Schandorf, was instrumental in guiding me through this process, even when some concepts seemed abstract at first. With perseverance and continuous learning, I gradually comprehended these concepts and began to apply them effectively.

Learning PHP and Laravel within such a short timeframe was demanding, yet immensely rewarding. I familiarized myself with Laravel’s MVC architecture, routing, middleware, and Eloquent ORM. This experience not only improved my coding skills but also broadened my understanding of backend frameworks and best practices in software development.

Additionally, this internship marked my first encounter with SQL and Laragon. I learned how to design and interact with SQL databases, which is crucial for any backend development role. Laragon proved to be an efficient tool for managing my development environment, facilitating smoother and faster development processes. Although my contributions to the team might not have been extensive, they were significant in terms of my learning journey. I assisted in developing and refining backend components of fintech applications, and the practical experience I gained from these tasks was invaluable.

In conclusion, my internship at Node Eight as a Backend Developer Intern was a highly educational and enriching experience. Despite not being a Computer Science student, I gained a solid understanding of what it means to build a cohesive and helpful fintech application. The skills and knowledge I acquired during this internship have laid a strong foundation for my future endeavours in backend development and the fintech industry. I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor, Mr. Schandorf, for his guidance and support throughout the internship, as well as to Node Eight for providing me with the opportunity to learn and grow professionally.

Inspired by David’s journey and want to embark on your own tech adventure? Send us an email at info@nodeeight.org to discuss potential internship opportunities at Node Eight.

We would love to hear from you.