It's not uncommon for people to discover their love of the tech industry whilst they're in the middle of a completely different career. Pivoting into tech is actually more common than you think.

Before 2020, it would have seemed impossible to change the course of your career with nothing but a laptop and some free time. But our student Ioana took the leap with an Ironhack remote Cybersecurity bootcamp and did just that! 

A French and Canadian national, Clémence is an Ironhacker who is passionate about the world of design and the life of a freelancer. After completing the UX/UI design bootcamp, at the Ironhack Barcelona campus in 2020, Clémence began to manage her network of contacts throughout Europe and found a niche within the freelance world. Learn about her story in this interview.

Today’s spotlight is on Alvin Sewram. Prior to enrolling in Ironhack, he was a retail store manager with a passion for graphic design, tech, and a hunger for learning new things. After completing Ironhack’s 9 week full-time Web Development Bootcamp at Ironhack Miami, he was able to build a fulfilling career as a Software Engineer. 

Product Managers work very closely with developers every day. After all, Product Managers are the glue holding product development together. But it’s not uncommon for PMs to see developers making software come to life with their bare hands and feel a sense of jealousy. “I want to be a builder too!” some of them think.

Today’s spotlight is on Dria Thomas. Prior to enrolling in Ironhack's bootcamp, she was a middle school Technology Teacher with a passion for web design. After completing Ironhack’s 24 week part-time Web Development Bootcamp, she was able to take her coding skills to the next level. Dria learned the top frameworks used by development teams, how to create responsive and user friendly designs in front-end development, and how to be comfortable with back-end development. 

Whether you've just qualified as a UX/UI designer or are planning a career change, a strong design portfolio is the key to getting the job you want. Before you start scanning your drawings from high school art class (don’t get us wrong, we’re sure they’re beautiful), think about what employers are looking for in a portfolio: project-based work that shows you can take a brief and turn it into something extraordinary. A good way to get a kickstart is by signing up for a bootcamp, since the work you do can form the basis of your portfolio. Or, if you're already established as a designer, look back over your projects and choose the ones that inspired you most. These will form the backbone of your designer portfolio.

Mariana is from Brazil but has been living in Amsterdam since 2019. She joined the Ironhack Full Stack Web Development bootcamp in May 2021 and we interviewed her about her experience during and after the bootcamp.