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Catherine Hodgkinson
Catherine Hodgkinson

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Beginning of an Endeavor: Why Software Engineering

The story I tell everyone who asks me why I want to become a Software Engineer is that I saw a video on TikTok of a girl who took a coding bootcamp directly out of high school, at Flatiron, and has been wildly successful (and genuinely happy) since then.

The story I don’t tell everyone is that I found that video in a moment of absolute despair. I found myself deeply dissatisfied with my current job and position and lack of advancement opportunities, but also lack of better options. I spent time job-searching to no avail, felt hopelessly stuck, and knew I needed a change, but that idea alone was too broad and overwhelming.

Then I saw the video on TikTok.

So while it sounds funny that a video on social media led me to want to become a Software Engineer, at Flatiron School in particular, I can’t help but feel utterly grateful that this opportunity has found me. At one point I couldn't see any additional time in my full-time work schedule to take on anything additional, turns out I simply hadn't encountered something I was truly interested in. I now want to become a Software Engineer for the endless possibilities that opens up. The technology industry is virtually bullet-proof in the sense that it will be around and growing forever. Having been alive long enough to see different economic conditions and now with the COVID-19 pandemic, I understand more truly the value of a stable and reliable career.

I am always seeking a challenge; I am an avid problem-solver. I am ready to build a lasting future for myself, and am confident that this challenging journey is exactly what my life has been missing. The concept of coding fascinates me to the point that I need to learn that language to further understand that computers don’t run on magic, but that it is truly a machine that is executing what it has been told to do.

I am writing this having just completed a week’s worth of assignments, and luckily that desire for a greater understanding only runs deeper now.

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