Alumni story: From Art history to UX/UI Design

Come and meet Leonard Philippe-Perron who completed the UX/UI Bootcamp at Ironhack Remote. We spoke to him about his Ironhack experience and incredible final project.

Before we talk about your experience in detail, can you please introduce yourself?

I'm a 23 years old french national who's technically qualified to be a historian and archeologist. Always keen to explore new horizons. I've always been attracted to software, computers and technology as a whole but with my studies I never thought I could turn it into something other than an interest with UX/UI Design.

Thank you Leonard. Ultimately, why did you choose to join Ironhack and break into tech?

Many people think that to be able to work in tech you need to be good at math. I was one of these believers until I realised there are other doors to enter into the tech industry. For me it was a big step as all my education has been related to art, I graduated in Art History at Royal Holloway, University of London and I have two Master degree: one by University of Amsterdam in Classics and Classical Languages and another one by King’s College London in Classical Art & Archaeology.

Previous to joining Ironhack I did a course in digital communication, that was my first approach to the technological world. Then a friend of mine recommended taking a look at Ironhack and being able to break into tech, mixing my knowledge of the art industry and tech will enable me to chart a path forward.

I would love to know, what was the key moment in your life that made you think about taking this step?

The announcement of another national lockdown. I decided I needed to do something useful, I couldn’t stand the idea of being stuck at home wasting time. So for me that was a key factor when deciding to join Ironhack. Also at the moment of the decision I didn’t have a commitment with any company so I was able to focus 100% on the bootcamp.

How did a Remote Bootcamp fit into your plan? Why did you choose Remote instead of an on-campus bootcamp?

For me an online format wasn’t the first option, I would have enjoyed a face to face program. But due to the Covid situation Ironhack Remote was the perfect solution for me to make the most of my time. 2020/2021 have been really tough so I can’t complain of having the chance to meet all the amazing people by zoom, hoping that one day I’ll meet them in person. 

I'm curious, what was your best moment at Ironhack?

The final project! This was definitely the best moment I spent studying at Ironhack. It was such a short and intense moment, I didn't see the hours pass by.

Now that you mention that the final project was your best moment at Ironhack. Can you tell us a bit more about it?

Our project was a little bit different from what we had studied before, Nuno and I looked at Virtual Reality and how the user would interact within VR. The company that handed us the project gave us total freedom on what we could bring forward, as such we decided to create a seamless, intuitive yet interactive control scheme for a Virtual Experience in which the user would be able to view in detail a product he could/would want to buy. Our project was focused only on how the user would control the experience. It was so much fun and we became the winners of the Hackshow. I guess that when you work on something you really like it is easier to stand for it (although we did work really hard!)

What are you aspiring to do next with your new skills?

I haven’t decided yet, I’m thinking of either garnering some experience in the VR industry or to take my UX skills to the art market and create some opportunities there.