From Spanish teacher to Web Developer: Empowering CNY Through Code
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The following post is from current StartFast Code student, Lauren Adam. Lauren, a former boarding school Spanish teacher, is on her way to a new career as a web developer.
Everyone tells you that you’re supposed to take classes in college to figure out what you want to do, to pick a major and then go on to a career. However, there isn’t much advice regarding what happens when you pick the wrong field. That’s where I found myself two years ago when I was a Spanish teacher at a private boarding school. After coming home and doing some soul searching, I decided to enroll in a local community college for a programming class and I found everything I had been looking for in prospective career selection.
If you’re thinking about learning how to code or if you’ve been struggling with learning to code on your own, I would recommend StartFast Code.
StartFast Code (SFC) was recommended to me at the point when I was beginning to realize that continuing my schooling in the traditional way would take 6+ years and more debt in student loans than I could even imagine. I was just days away form having to submit payment to the college for my summer and fall courses, and had to make a decision about which path I was going to take very quickly. After discussing it at length with my mom and boyfriend, who have been my support system through all of this, I decided to take the plunge.
Currently, I’m about 6 weeks into the program and my excitement continues to grow. SFC has eliminated the problems that I was experiencing with traditional education. Simple things like being able to go to a professor’s office hours were made difficult by my 9–5 job and solving programming problems via email is no easy task. Being able to meet with the instructors every night has fast tracked my progress in the curriculum because if I’m having trouble, or am “blocked,” it’s only until the next class or even sooner if you reach out to someone on the class’s Slack channel. At this stage in my life, the flipped classroom method employed by SFC makes for a better learning environment.
I’ve already been thinking about what my next steps will be when I’ve completed the bootcamp and the obvious answer is find a job. Before I finish, however, I intend to start some small freelancing projects that can really get my feet wet as far as working with clients and recognizing their needs. For the last year, I’ve worked at a 10 year old start up in Armory Square of Syracuse and I love the culture of my office. Where ever I end up, I hope that I can find the same kind of camaraderie and support that I’ve experienced with my current company.
At the end of the day, SFC has wonderful instructors, a great support system, and a genuine interest in student success. They also incorporate local events into the classes, which encourages students to network and meet likeminded people in the Syracuse area.
If you’re thinking about learning how to code or if you’ve been struggling with learning to code on your own, I would recommend Start Fast Code.
