One professional who followed a decidedly squiggly career pathway before doing a six-month bootcamp in 2020 is Lucy Ironmonger, a tech lead at fintech Zuto, who studied English with creative writing at the University of Birmingham 13 years earlier. While there, she found a bar job and, due to her love of music, seized the opportunity to run the establishment's music night every Tuesday.
For many, the traditional path of a four-year, on-campus degree followed by entry-level roles seems dauntingly long and expensive. However, a seismic shift in education, accelerated by digital advancements, has opened up a highly effective, fast-tracked alternative: online degrees. These aren't just stop-gap solutions; they are increasingly recognized and respected pathways for ambitious individuals to pivot into, or accelerate within, the high-demand tech landscape.
I always knew I wanted to study and work in the United States. When I was 18, I dreamed of making $200,000 a year working in Big Tech when I graduated. Over time, I began to question whether I wanted my career dictated by a visa. I realized how little control I had over external factors: the economy, layoffs, and visa policies. The only thing I could control was my response.
In a previous career, I served as director of a professional association, called the Administrative Management Society, which produced events, publications, and research for its 12,000 members across North America. The membership consisted of IT, HR, and finance managers, who joined to advance their knowledge and connect with colleagues. It is here I learned how networking -- the human-to-human kind -- is the key to career advancement in this world. And this holds true more than ever as we journey into the digital age.
Imagine spending your work day posted up under a thatch roofed cabana next to the ocean. The clicking of your laptop keyboard merges with the sound of crashing waves and once your work day wraps up you spend the rest of the evening surfing. Perhaps you'd rather spend rainy mornings working in a cozy cafe before wandering cobblestone streets in Europe.