TECHSWITCH BLOG

Codeine to Coding

Fri, 18 Mar 2022

Yvonne’s Career Change

Prior to becoming a software developer, I was a pharmacist.

I began teaching myself to code in November 2020 due to feeling that I couldn’t stay in job which wasn’t challenging coupled with limited career opportunities.

I applied for the TechSwitch bootcamp and I was accepted onto the January 2021 programme. I trained for 12 weeks in full-stack software development and was extremely fortunate to be offered a job afterwards, and since then I have been officially working as a software developer.

I am still fairly new to the job and to coding in general, but I’d like to share some tips that have helped me on my journey to becoming a software developer - “Beginners’ Advice from a Beginner”.

I often come across blogs written by developers with many years of experience and although these are helpful, I wonder if they remember what it was like for them at the beginning. I hope my experiences can help those of you who are also starting out.

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Why demand for tech talent is greater than ever

Mon, 22 Nov 2021

and what you can do to manage this…

It has been well documented that there is a tech talent shortage which has been building in recent years, not just in the UK but globally. Right now, the requirement for tech talent is higher than ever due to pent-up demand as we exit from the pandemic and as late adopters of digital technologies look to catch up. But it’s not just about hiring talent, it’s also about building the right culture to develop highly effective teams. Organisations also need to consider making deliberate investments in attracting people from much wider pools of talent.

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One Year On...

Mon, 1 Mar 2021

Alex - 2019 Cohort

Alex comes from an Accountancy and Management background but always felt something was missing from his career. He admired people who worked in tech but was hesitant about returning to university so decided to start learning to code by himself. He started with an android development course on Udacity where he came across Java for the first time. Intrigued by the language, he was keen to learn more and a Developer friend agreed to guide him on some more advanced Java topics. He later came across TechSwitch and was accepted onto our October 2019 programme.

Alex is now a Junior API Developer at an online greeting card marketplace. We caught up with Alex to find out how he’s doing one year on…

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TechSwitch Application Process

Mon, 1 Feb 2021

At TechSwitch, our mission is to provide people from all walks of life with the opportunity to become Software Developers, regardless of their background. And our Application Process has been designed with this in mind.

We place strong importance on diversity and recruit individuals based on their potential rather than solely on experience. Aptitude, Attitude and Motivation are the three key attributes that we look out for throughout the Application Process.

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2020 Cohort Testimonials

Wed, 20 Jan 2021

Beatrice

Whilst learning how to code, Beatrice discovered that she wanted to be a role model, to motivate and help people from underrepresented communities to consider technology. She’s a firm believer that technology should be accessible for all and the workforce should reflect our diverse and globally-connected society. Inspired by her TechSwitch course tutor, Beatrice also volunteers as a teaching assistant, passing on the valuable knowledge that she learnt to help other career switchers.

“TechSwitch provided me with a good insight into how software developers and different tech teams work collaboratively. I had previously taught myself how to code and was used to independently building projects. However, being able to collaborate is a key part of being a developer. TechSwitch introduced me to pair-programming, which allowed me to learn from my peers. As a result, I feel more comfortable asking for help and using pair-programming to learn from other junior developers. I even feel comfortable pair-programming with senior developers in order to learn and become unstuck at work.”

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2019 Cohort Testimonials

Mon, 11 Jan 2021

Jake – Junior Front End Developer

Jake’s first encounter with coding was during his post-graduate degree in Taxonomy and Biodiversity, in the form of a 6-week intensive R course. The more time he spent as a hobbyist coder, the more he learned to love the nature of the work. The constant challenge kept him hooked throughout. A few months after graduating, he made the “undeniably scary” decision to quit his full-time job as a lab technician and channel everything he had into making a career in software development a reality.

‘I came in to this course with almost no prior knowledge of programming and through it secured a full-time developer role. Whilst the course is fast-paced and challenging, Techswitch does a great job of ensuring you feel truly valued and supported throughout by offering great teaching, frequent one-on-one chats and, if you need it, extra mentoring and tasks to make sure you nail those core concepts. The course has undoubtedly fast-tracked my career, and with the added safety net of expert tuition, top-end technology and even mock interviewing, I would highly recommend TechSwitch to anyone looking to get in to software development.’

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