Growing up, I’ve always been interested in technology and how it was possible to make such intricate programs and websites. As high school came to an end, I was left with the decision to decide what I wanted to major in. I ignored all my instincts to study a tech-related field and chose psychology. I sold myself short because I simply thought that I couldn’t become a successful software engineer. When I thought of people who were successful in this field I never really thought of people I, as a woman, could relate to, and it discouraged me from even starting to study software engineering. After a semester of studying psychology, I started to become uninterested and the reason for that is simple. I didn’t have the passion to study psychology. I was truly passionate about software engineering but I shied away from getting into the field because 18 year old me told myself I couldn’t do it.
I started self studying programming and got into the basics of coding. Within a few tutorials, I realized that this is what I’ve been wanting to do all along. While doing my research, I found out about women like Grace Hopper and Betty Holberton who were one of the many pioneers of software engineering. I felt inspired and I soon realized that I should’ve never sold myself short in the first place. I should’ve went with what I was passionate about instead of putting myself down. But what’s done is done and now I will never sell myself short when doing something I am passionate about. Now, I take on challenges as they are thrown at me instead of turning the other way and choosing an easier option. Not only do I want to be a successful software engineer because of my love for what I’ve learned so far in programming, but to represent women in technology for other aspiring women so that they don’t feel underrepresented in any way.
When I found out about Lambda School, I was taking CS courses at my local community college and I was planning to attend a coding boot camp. I enjoyed studying Computer Science however, I wasn’t able to apply the information to real-world projects partly because everything was being presented in lecture format. In my personal opinion, one cannot become a successful software engineer by listening to lectures and taking multiple choice tests. After researching Lambda School, I found that it taught software engineering with the progressive approach that I wanted from college all along. Lambda School provides a more hands on approach to learning software engineering. It also pushes working as a team and learning how to network with others in order to accomplish tasks which is similar to how software engineers work in the real world. Ultimately, it would give me the skill set to become a successful software engineer.
Top comments (0)