Miriam Fredkin

Miriam Fredkin, a confident looking, well spoken young lady of 21 is in her fourth year of studies at Machon Tal, JCT's Engineering School for Women. She lives with her parents and three siblings in Rechovot. Her mother is a homemaker and her father teaches Judaic studies to new immigrants. An older brother is a yeshiva student and travels abroad frequently to educate people on topics of Jewish interest. One of her sister's is studies teaching, while the other is in High School. Miriam is studying Computer Science with a focus on Management and Industry.  She has been interested in computers since high school where she received preparatory background. "Hi-tech is the future. It's in the atmosphere, in the street, it's very appealing!" says Miriam. 

She chose Machon Tal because of its appropriate atmosphere for a young, religious woman, where she could benefit from Judaic studies and receive an academic degree at the same time, while enjoying a productive, personal relationship with the staff of JCT.

Miriam hopes that the field of technology she has chosen will eventually allow her to work flexible hours, possibly from home, since she looks forward to being married and having children. “I believe it is possible to combine a successful career with marriage and motherhood", says Miriam.

It has not all been smooth sailing for Miriam, however, as she describes a breakdown in her confidence after approximately two years of studies. "I asked myself why I decided to go into the field of computers. The studies during those first two years were very general and detailed and I had second thoughts about my interest in this field. We would sometimes spend up to fourteen hours straight in front of a computer and took classes on difficult algorithms and other highly technical subjects. A lot of my friends experienced similar doubts, but things improved in the third year. The classes became more specific and focused and I began to see how I could use the information I learned for a practical end."

During the course of her studies, Miriam attended a special program on Communications, offered by CISCO Systems at Machon Tal. She feels this experience was very worthwhile, and even goes on to say that it provided a basis for all her other studies. She worked as a systems manager at Machon Tal on a part-time basis, using the skills she acquired from the CISCO course.  

When asked about plans for the future, Miriam mentions that she is currently working on her final project in systems development, a field that in has she developed a keen interest in and would like to to pursue in the future.  This final project is being done for a big corporation, Ness Technologies on behalf of the Ministry of Tourism. They have offered her a permanent position, which she is considering, upon successful completion of her studies at JCT.

Miriam's mother always advised her that a person needs three things to succeed in life: a driver's license, a high level of English and computer knowledge. Miriam acknowledges with quiet satisfaction that she has acquired all three. All in all she seems a capable, articulate and motivated young woman with a bright future ahead.