Husband & Dad | EUV Optics Engineer @ASMLcompany | MSc. Photonics (Germany) | BSc. Ed Physics, First Class Hons. (Nigeria)
Connecticut, USA
Joined June 2012
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I’ve finally moved to the United States 🇺🇸
Glad to announce I’ve been transferred from the Netherlands to our Connecticut office in the United States.
Looking forward to what the future holds for me in the US 🇺🇸
I heard the FOTO guy is cleaning his tweets. Why not leave them? I hope this guy here can sha keep same energy if he ever applies for USA visa.
I hope you never have to apply for a U.S. visa someday. But if you do, I also hope you keep this same energy and don’t suddenly delete your X account or start cleaning up your old posts. 😂🇺🇸
Don’t take this as me attacking your point. I’m a Christian, and I honestly don’t care about the religious debate here. I’m just hoping America isn’t somewhere you’re dreaming of moving to someday, considering how deeply Christianity has historically influenced American society and culture. 😂🇺🇸
lol. I told this guy the same thing months back 👇
xitter.cf/ifwal95/status/2086676…
My current job in the USA 🇺🇸 came through an internal transfer from my former team in the Netherlands 🇳🇱.
But the story of how I got into the company in the first place, while still pursuing my Master’s degree in Germany 🇩🇪, is quite interesting!
Let me share! 🧵👇
1/
One day, a PhD student in my research lab in Germany received an email about the ASML Best of Tech Masterclass, an event organized for selected Master’s students across Europe.
She forwarded the email to everyone in our lab.
I read it and thought, “Why not give it a shot? At least I’ll get to learn something from one of the world’s leading semiconductor technology companies.”
So, I applied! 🚀
2/
I was shortlisted for a video interview, completed it, and eventually got selected to participate in the two-day virtual masterclass!
There were about 50 selected students from universities across Europe. 🌍
During the event, we were introduced to ASML’s technologies and some of the fascinating engineering challenges the company was solving.
We had signed NDAs beforehand.
3/
The event wasn’t just about listening to presentations.
We participated in brainstorming sessions, peer-to-peer discussions, and technical problem-solving activities. 🧠
Then came the second day!
There was an interesting activity on the agenda: Meet and Greet with ASML Engineers.
We had the opportunity to interact directly with two engineers.
Little did I know that this particular session would change my career trajectory!
4/
The first engineer I was matched with told me something interesting.
He was actually the person who had reviewed my application and video interview! 😳
He explained that my research background was closely related to what he had worked on during his PhD, and that was what caught his attention.
We had a very interesting conversation.
Then came the second engineer!
5/
Unknown to me, this second engineer wasn’t just an engineer.
He was actually a hiring manager, leading a team of about 10 engineers in the company’s Optics group!
We started talking.
He already had my CV and was particularly curious about my teaching experience.
We discussed my academic background, research, and Master’s program in Optics and Photonics.
Then he said something I wasn’t expecting! 👀
6/
He told me there was an open position in his team and that he thought I would be a good fit!
Imagine that! 😭😂
I had attended the masterclass simply to learn about semiconductor technology, and here was a hiring manager discussing a potential job opportunity with me!
He immediately shared the job link with me in the chat. 🔗
7/
After the masterclass, I opened the link, studied the job description, and started preparing my application.
I wrote my motivation letter and sent it to my girlfriend in Nigeria, who is now my wife. ❤️
She reviewed it and made some corrections.
I finalized everything and submitted my application on a Saturday.
By Tuesday, HR called me to schedule an interview! 📞
8/
Long story short, I went through the recruitment process and got the job! 🎉
And here’s the interesting part:
I relocated from Germany to the Netherlands to start my new job just one day after defending my Master’s thesis! 🇩🇪➡️🇳🇱
Two years later, I transferred internally to the United States. 🇳🇱➡️🇺🇸
Apply for opportunities, attend events, engage with people, and never underestimate the power of networking. 🤝
❤️🇩🇪🇳🇱🇺🇸
‘Wale Adejimi retweeted
I’ve been to some places because someone said something or out in a word for me. Ever since, I have a mandate to always speak on behalf of others when given the opportunity. Even in some cases where I don’t know them.
I once stumbled on an application from someone that has been sitting in the files for donkey weeks. I brought it out, reached out to the person via email and saw that they were still interested in it. I pursued it upwards until the request was granted. Till date i don’t know who that person is. I don’t even know their gender(their name was confusing).
Be competent, have experience, be good. This positions you for opportunities. When who you know speaks on your behalf, they know that you won’t fall their hands.
I’m beginning to think that, at the end of the day, life is more about WHO YOU KNOW than WHAT YOU KNOW!
You can be exceptionally good at what you do, but sometimes, the people you know, those who believe in you, and those willing to open doors for you determine how far you can go in life.
Competence is important, but connections can take you places competence alone may never reach!
God help us! 🙏
‘Wale Adejimi retweeted
This is so true. While having competence and other good qualities makes you ready for opportunities, who you know accelerates you 10X faster and better.
I’ve been to some places because someone said something or out in a word for me.
STOP RELYING ON HUMANS TOO MUCH! 😭😭
The day I realized that someone you consider a mentor could actually be jealous of you was when someone I looked up to during my graduate studies in Germany 🇩🇪 completed his PhD, joined the same company I was working for, and never bothered to tell me! 😂
This was someone I constantly ran to for updates about my Master’s program, academic guidance, and advice on one thing or another.
When I eventually secured my job, I excitedly shared the news with him, and he seemed genuinely happy for me!
But imagine my surprise when, about a year after I had left, he moved to the same city, joined the same company in the Netherlands 🇳🇱, and couldn’t even send me a simple message to say, “Hey, I’m here!”
I had absolutely no idea until the day we unexpectedly crossed paths during lunch! 😂😂
Till today, that’s something I still cannot explain!
Perhaps there’s more to human relationships than we sometimes realize. 😂
More context:
I get your point. It might be his personality, and it might have nothing to do with jealousy. But let me provide some more context.
This was someone I had been in constant contact with since I received my admission and scholarship and when I was still in Naija.
He was one of the two Nigerians who welcomed me on my very first day in Germany and took me to my hostel.
He knew about every stage of my academic journey because I was always updating him and seeking his guidance.
We even made music together!
So, you can imagine how difficult it is for me to understand why someone with whom I had such a relationship would join my company, move to the same city, and not even reach out to say hello.
It was several months after he joined that I randomly bumped into him during lunch!
You can call it personality or whatever else, but I personally find that behaviour strange and inconsistent with the values I expect in a friendship.
I’m not saying he owed me anything, but surely, a simple hello isn’t too much to expect from someone with whom you’ve shared that much history.
I get your point. It might be his personality, and it might have nothing to do with jealousy. But let me provide some more context.
This was someone I had been in constant contact with since I received my admission and scholarship and when I was still in Naija.
He was one of the two Nigerians who welcomed me on my very first day in Germany and took me to my hostel.
He knew about every stage of my academic journey because I was always updating him and seeking his guidance.
We even made music together!
So, you can imagine how difficult it is for me to understand why someone with whom I had such a relationship would join my company, move to the same city, and not even reach out to say hello.
It was several months after he joined that I randomly bumped into him during lunch!
You can call it personality or whatever else, but I personally find that behaviour strange and inconsistent with the values I expect in a friendship.
I’m not saying he owed me anything, but surely, a simple hello isn’t too much to expect from someone with whom you’ve shared that much history.
‘Wale Adejimi retweeted
I think it’s not okay for someone I took as a mentor throughout my two years MSc. That’s my judgement according to my values. Maybe it’s nothing to him, but it’s wrong according to my values.
‘Wale Adejimi retweeted
Yeah, many schools including Cambridge in the UK
This is one major reason why many fathers of modern science were Christians
From Galileo Galilei to Isaac Newton, and a host of others
Did you know that some of the world’s most prestigious universities were founded by Christian churches and clergymen, and that some STILL read the Bible or sing biblical Psalms during their graduation events? 😳
Let me show you something fascinating!
🇺🇸 Harvard University (1636) — Founded by Puritans, partly to educate Christian ministers.
🇺🇸 Yale University (1701) — Founded by Congregationalist ministers to train future religious and civic leaders.
🇺🇸 Columbia University (1754) — Originally King’s College, with Anglican roots. Its first president was an Anglican priest!
🇬🇧 King’s College London (1829) — Established in the tradition of the Church of England.
🇨🇦 Trinity College, University of Toronto (1851) — Founded by an Anglican bishop.
🇺🇸 University of the South (1857) — Founded by Episcopal bishops and still maintains its Anglican identity.
Now, here’s the part that really fascinates me!
👉At Harvard, Psalm 78 is traditionally sung during its Baccalaureate service.
👉At Yale’s 2026 Baccalaureate ceremony, biblical passages from the Psalms and the Gospel of Matthew were read!
These are institutions that have produced some of the world’s greatest scientists, Nobel laureates, presidents, engineers, and intellectuals.
And yet, centuries later, elements of their Christian heritage remain visible in their academic traditions!
Of course, many of these universities are now secular or nonsectarian, welcoming students of all religious backgrounds.
But one thing is undeniable: Christianity, particularly through the Anglican, Puritan, and other Protestant traditions, played an enormous role in the development of higher education.
The Church didn’t just build cathedrals. It also helped build institutions that shaped modern science, medicine, engineering, and civilization!
How many people today actually know the Christian history behind these universities? ❤️✝️
I got these insights today while listening to Bishop Dapo Asaju preach.
People can be so ungrateful sha!
Imagine someone reviewing your application documents, writing recommendation letters, and even paying your application fees, yet you couldn’t even inform them when you became successful?
They had to find out about your success on LinkedIn? Seriously?
Scholars, you can do better than this! A little gratitude goes a long way!
Currently listening to Johann Strauss II’s Tales from the Vienna Woods (German: Geschichten aus dem Wienerwald), Op. 325. 🎶🎻❤️
