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Inspire others with your career journey
We love seeing our all your success stories. Here is a great place for you to share them with us and the rest of the Learning People community.
Comment on this discussion how your online training has supported your career.
Some prompts to get you started:
- Why were you looking to learn a new skill when enrolling with Learning People?
- What made you look towards a career change?
- What value did you see in getting certified?
- How has your career developed since enrolling on your course?
- What advice would you give to someone considering a career in tech or project management?
Here are some of our top student success stories...
You can see more student success stories on our website. Visit: https://www.learningpeople.com/uk/about/student-testimonial-videos/
We can't wait to hear all your stories!
Comments
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Operational Team Manager Turned Web Developer
Why a new skill and career change?
Since I was old enough to work, all my roles had been in the Customer Services sector - it wasn't something I actively chose because I was passionate about or anything, it was just the the first thing that came up when I was job hunting. I studied Biomedical Sciences at Uni, with the ultimate goal of becoming a Dentist. However, after graduating from Uni and while applying to Dental Colleges/Universities, I got my first full-time job as a Customer Services Advisor at Vodafone, just to get some steady income. Before I knew it, days turned into years, and what was supposed to be a stop-gap at the time ultimately turned into what I thought would be my career.
Over the course of the next 11 years, I moved to a couple of different companies and progressed to Operational Team Manager, still within the Customer Services sector. This felt like a natural progression in an industry that I 'fell into', but I always felt that there was something missing that was preventing me from being completely satisfied with my job. Towards the end of my previous role, I just felt like I was going through the motions each day, ticking each day off, and just 'working for the weekend', which prompted me to evaluate my career choice two years ago.
When doing this, I realised that I had always been technically minded, and a couple of projects that I had worked on previously had stoked the fire for me wanting to learn more about how software was built. Following this discovery and some chats with a couple of friends within the tech industry, I decided to change careers into software/web development. After deciding this, I enrolled in Code Institute's Full Stack Diploma in Software Development course via The Learning People.
Value in getting certified?
For me, the value in getting certified was having an official qualification, along with a portfolio of assessed projects that I could present to potential employers to demonstrate my hands on experience and skills that I had picked up during the course. Additionally, the extra value for me was the career support that The Learning People offered once I graduated from the course. The career support helped me to develop my CV and cover letter, and provided me with useful information about the tech interview process. This was invaluable in helping me secure my first Junior Web Developer role.
How my career has developed since enrolling?
I enrolled in the course in January 2019, graduated in November of the same year, and I started my first Junior Web Developer role at J B Cole UK in March 2020. Through the course, I had learnt HTML, CSS, JavaScript and Python, and since graduating I've also learnt React. In my day to day role, I mainly work with React for frontend development, and Python/Django for backend development. The role has allowed me to develop my existing skills, while also working with plenty of new technologies along the way. The company works on a lot of different and interesting projects, which provides plenty of variety in my day to day role and ensures that no two days are the same. I'm now 7 months in and each day so far has confirmed that I made the right choice to change careers into something that I'm really passionate about. I finally found a job and career that I look forward to and really enjoy each day, rather than just going through the motions and waiting for the day to be over!
My advice to a career changer?
Do it! A career change is a daunting experience, but once it pays off it's so rewarding! Be prepared to immerse yourself in it and soak up as much knowledge as you can. Don't understimate the importance of practice - the more you do/repeat, the more you learn and the more it sticks! Also, never stand still. The tech industry is constantly evolving with new technologies coming out all the time, so keep your knowledge fresh. There will be times when you feel that you're not 'cut out' to be a developer (imposter syndrome), but be patient and confident in your abilities. You will consistently be out of your comfort zone as a developer, as you'll come across problems that you've never faced before, which require research and learning on the go, so even the most experienced developers still get imposter syndrome - you're not on your own. When you overcome any problems, though, it is so satisfying and rewarding. For me, changing careers was the best decision I ever made, and was totally worth it!
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Amazing read Very proud Sunny!! You have done amazingly - was great to start that journey with you and continue to watch you progress!!1
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Fantastic to read and highly inspirational. Exactly the type of success stories we aim to help kickstart. Well done!1
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