Practical Experience from Industry Leaders: An Open Lecture by EPAM for Computer Science Students

On May 25, 2026, Computer Science students attended an exceptionally engaging and productive open lecture titled “Agile in Real Projects.” The guest speaker was Yevheniia Kashcheieva, Quality Engineering Manager at  EPAM, who shared her extensive professional experience with future IT specialists.

Yevheniia has more than 13 years of experience in the IT industry. Her professional journey is a strong example for students: she took her first step into IT while still in her third year of university through the company’s external training courses. Over the years, she has progressed from an entry-level specialist to the leader of a large professional unit. Throughout her career, Yevheniia has successfully worked as a Test Manager and Delivery Manager, and today, alongside her management responsibilities, she is actively involved in developing and driving the Automated Quality Assurance (AQA) direction within the .NET discipline.

During the online lecture, the speaker gave a detailed overview of how Agile development methodologies work in real large-scale commercial projects. Students learned why textbook theory does not always fully match real-world practice, what challenges team members face at different stages of the software development lifecycle, and how adaptability together with a strong focus on customer value helps create successful IT products.

The meeting was especially valuable because Yevheniia is also an experienced mentor and educator. She shared practical advice on how students can begin their professional journey, which hard and soft skills deserve attention already at this stage, and how to prepare for a first role in an IT company.

At the end of the lecture, students had the opportunity to ask questions related both to Agile methodology and to the specifics of managers’ and QA engineers’ work in distributed teams.

We sincerely thank Yevheniia Kashcheieva and  EPAM for this insightful and inspiring meeting and for their willingness to invest time in the development of a new generation of Ukrainian IT professionals. We look forward to continued fruitful cooperation. 

The materials from the meeting can be viewed at the following link: https://youtu.be/UYfN0YlykW8