Shira Merzel
Computer Engineer
NDS

If Shira Merzel were a few years older, her becoming an Engineer of Computer Science may have stayed only a dream. Shira was part of the third graduating class of Machon Lustig, JCT’s Institute for Women in Ramat Gan and has found that not only her profession is in high demand, but she is, as well.

“I found Machon Lustig just in time,” Shira remembers. “I knew that I wanted to learn computer science, but the right framework for studies just wasn’t available, even in the later part of the 1990’s. I wanted to continue growing on a spiritual level while learning a profession, and Machon Lustig was the perfect opportunity to do this.”

She finished her studies at Machon Lustig with top grades, both in her academic and her Jewish studies.  She says: “The courses were excellent, challenging and always interesting. This was a pleasant surprise. More important, my classmates were highly motivated and the dynamics in the classroom gave way to creativity and openness both among the students and the teachers”.

“For a new school, a lot could have gone wrong. Instead, the teachers and staff always listened to our suggestions. If we had a constructive idea or even a complaint, which was very infrequent, our teachers were quick to implement. That was very refreshing for us.”

Machon Lustig had a lot to do with preparing her for work. Shira did her final project with another student, developing a debugger program for ELOP, a complete electro-optics system house which maintains all R&D, production, assembly and testing facilities under one roof. ELOP employs several JCT graduates in top positions. Shira developed a real-time debugging program for DSP cards that are used in many of the systems built by ELOP. The company adopted the program that she and her colleague had prepared and it is in full use by ELOP today.

After completing her studies, she worked as a programming engineer for Sapiens, a publicly traded company located in Rechovot, and a leading global provider of IT (information technology) business solutions for the insurance industry. Shira pointed out, “Machon Lustig was very much a part of the process, while I was looking for work. Not only did they help my find my job, they made sure that the salary I received at Sapiens was fair.”

But with a young 1½ year old daughter, Shira was looking to move closer to her home in Jerusalem. She received a great offer from NDS, a subsidiary of News Corporation, the global media and entertainment giant. NDS employs many JCT and Machon Tal graduates, providing services to two known companies, BSkyB and DirectTV.

“Women working in the high-tech industry in Israel face many challenges,” Shira observes. “but, I think challenges are the nature of the high-tech industry in general, and Machon Lustig has prepared me well to face these challenges. I know that my contribution at work will come from various directions – an understanding of the subject, a fresh approach and new insights when looking at a problem.”

Other outstanding alumni profiles:
Chaim Goldstein
Shai Fultheim
Yzhak Levit