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. Jeroen van Bart, Product Manager turned Junior Developer and Ironhack alum, took the leap and joined our Web Development bootcamp. He kindly sat down to chat with us about his experience, as well as sharing some advice for how others can make the same journey. Can you tell us about yourself? My name is Jeroen van Bart. I live in Amsterdam with my wife and dog and in addition to coding, I love to paint. To display my paintings, I often played with the idea of creating my own website, but never found the time to dive into the world of coding. Then the world was struck by COVID-19 and that gave me the opportunity to rearrange my life. A few of my friends and Ironhack alumni suggested the Ironhack bootcamp and this is where my coding journey started. Tell us about your experience at Ironhack Ironhack was a rollercoaster ride with many ups and downs and boasted a pace that, at times, didn’t seem manageable. But after the ride, almost everything made sense. The amount of information you have to deal with in 9 weeks is insane and at times I felt I was not going to make it, but after the first few weeks the puzzle pieces fell in place and I started to make sense of everything. So my experience was intense and at times stressful, but I learned so much. Looking back, Ironhack was definitely worth the challenge! Before Ironhack For the last nine years, I have been working for a company in the IT branch on a commercial level. But the technical side of things always piqued my interest. So with the whole COVID situation, I had time to think about how I wanted to rearrange my life. Since I knew a few people who went through the Ironhack bootcamp already and the positive experiences they had, I decided to start my Ironhack journey too. Why did you decide to make a career change? In life, you spend most of your time working and sleeping, so you best make sure you have a good bed and a job you love. It’s important to know what gives you energy and from where you get most of your satisfaction. For me, that happens when I am able to create. For any creative process, however, you need to have an understanding of the world and the present reality. Therefore, for me to gain a better understanding of the world nowadays, it was inevitable to come across coding, since most of what we do, see, and feel happens in the context of technology. I wanted to dive deeper into the world of this technology so my career change actually comes from the fact that I want to spend my time creating something useful while doing what makes me tick. Do you think having been a Product Manager has helped you in the world of programming? How? No, I do not think being a Product Manager helped me be a good programmer; the closest my previous job came to learning to program was using formulas in Excel. But I do have a good understanding about products, services, and markets. So in the long term, I think my previous experiences will help me in my new career. After Ironhack First of all, I am super grateful to the people of YPA for their guidance and for offering me the opportunity to learn on the job. I actually have an Ironhack alum as my mentor and she recognizes many of the struggles I am going through. She has been a tremendous guide during my onboarding and I would love to pay it forward one day and become a mentor to another Ironhacker myself. Working at YPA, which is an agency, I get to work on different cool projects for a variety of clients. The diversity of work and the mix of signatures in projects is such a “deep dive” into learning how to code. While at Ironhack, I was not really aware of the complexity in understanding code made by others. So far, understanding code has taken up to 60% of my time on the job and while it’s a big challenge, it is also thrilling to solve a puzzle. Looking back on my time at YPA as a Junior Front-end Web Developer, I cannot believe how much I learned in such a short time. I can honestly say that I truly love my job. Advice for future Ironhackers Just do it! If you start a journey like Ironhack, you have to find peace with the fact that you will spend your first weeks confused and wondering why you chose this. Don’t give up, push through, and enjoy the rollercoaster ride until the end. And who knows, maybe it will be as life-changing for you as it’s been for me.

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. Previously, portfolios would have been physical pieces of work carefully bound into a book. Today, they're online and can be easily shared with a few clicks, so prospective employers see a lot more portfolios than they used to. That means your work has to stand out and make an immediate impact. How do you go about creating a design portfolio that will “wow” whoever takes a look at it? The Ironhack team has put together seven inspirational tips to help you do just that. 1. Aim for Quality and Diversity Time and attention spans are short and — wait what were we talking about? Oh yeah, attention spans. Hiring agents have many applications to review so it's important not to overload them with a crowded portfolio. Yours should be compact, crisp, and compelling, delivering an exciting reflection of you and your work. Aim to include (depending on your experience) between three and ten examples of work. Go through your work with a critical eye, choosing pieces that you're proud of and that received positive feedback from clients. Aim to show your range of skill by including, for example, a website designed for one company and an advertising project for another. 2. Bring Examples to Life with Backstories Images are central to your portfolio but they don’t always speak for themselves. Brief accompanying texts should answer these questions: What was your brief? What inspired your idea? What did your design achieve? Did you encounter any problems? If so, how did you solve them? What would you do differently in retrospect? And don’t be afraid to brag a little. If your design gave the client a measurable upturn in business, talk about it! If a project received a glowing testimonial, include it! Not every example needs to be a complete case study but pick one or two and use them to highlight your design process in full. Providing this extra information helps prospective employers decide whether you and your ideas will add value to their design team. 3. Make the Portfolio "Yours" Once you've selected your best designs and created backstories, you need to put them together in a cohesive way that sells you and your work. You need to create your “brand.” Think about how the different examples work together and then choose a consistent color theme and font that complements them. Avoid distracting movements or animations. Instead, let one image roll gently into the next. 4. First Impressions Count Your portfolio's homepage is the first thing potential employers see. It should be as attention-grabbing as an album cover or a movie poster. Easy-to-find and follow navigation links such as "my work" and "about me" are non-negotiable (you’re a UX/UI designer after all!) but the layout and colors of the rest should give readers a clear idea of you, your brand, and your style. Have contact details clearly visible, ideally via a link from every page. Create a standout homepage and reap the rewards with a new career in UX/UI design. 5. Showcase Your Work and Skills with the Right Web Host Your portfolio is ready and now you need a platform for it, one that makes browsing a pleasure. To some extent, this choice of platform depends on your technical know-how. The most flexible ones assume some coding knowledge (HTML or CSS) while hosted websites such as Carbonmade and Dunked are easier to work with but have fewer customization options. If you have coding skills to show off and want a fully customizable platform, choose a self-hosted website or create your own website from scratch. Whichever route you take, ensure that all images are correctly sized for your chosen template. Prospective employers don't have time to wait for oversized photos to download. Make use of tools such as TinyJPG to compress pictures without sacrificing quality. 6. Get it Checked You know when you hear a word over and over and over again, and it just starts sounding like gobbledigook? While creating your portfolio, you’ll be looking at your text and images so much that it’ll all kind of just become a blur, making it easy to overlook errors. Ask someone you trust to check it. Does it look professional? Is it easy to navigate? Does it flow seamlessly? Finally, double (or even triple) check it for typographical, spelling, and grammatical mistakes. You're looking for employment and nothing damages your credibility and chances more than basic misspellings and punctuation mistakes. 7. Promote your work Even the best designed portfolio only produces results if people see it. Promoting it is essential: Join an online design community (such as Dribble or Behance ). Other designers can see your work and give feedback. This improves your portfolio while creating a business network for you. Also, employers visit these sites in search of exciting new designers. Use social media. Publish links to your portfolio on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. Remember to keep the links updated. Friends and colleagues will remember your portfolio when they hear that someone is looking for a designer. Channel the power of “word-of-mouth.” Show former and existing clients your new portfolio (especially if their work is in it!) and ask them to share it if they hear of a job opening. Once you've created, launched, and promoted your designer portfolio be sure to keep it current. Schedule regular review dates on your calendar for editing and adding your latest design successes. Taking an Ironhack UX/UI design bootcamp gives you the hands-on skills to succeed in the design world. The design projects you work on during your course can form the basis of your portfolio. You'll have a headstart when it's time to look for a new career.

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. You always dreamed of being a magistrate of a criminal court. Why did you change your mind? I have always considered myself a very fair person and wanted to use that to make my country a better place to live. But after doing a postgraduate degree in digital law, my curiosity to learn new things led me to do an online Udemy Bootcamp about web development. And after 10 years in law, I realized that I want to change the world in a different way. I started planning a career transition and, after finishing the online Bootcamp, I joined the Full-Stack Web Developer Program at Ironhack in May 2021, which I finished at the end of July. I'm an adaptable and focused person who likes to plan things carefully and keep them tidy. On a personal level, I love traveling and learning about different cultures. The Ironhack Experience My experience at Ironhack couldn't have been better. I learned a lot about development but I also developed other skills like communication. In addition, they helped and encouraged me during my job search; it’s very challenging and tiring, but it’s definitely worth it. Before Ironhack I used to be a lawyer in Brazil. My last permanent job was at the same law company that I had been working at since I left university. I kept my job when I moved to the Netherlands, but then I decided I wanted to have work experience here in the Netherlands and I looked for a company that outsourced catering services. I worked for a while as a dishwasher at the company where my boyfriend works as a developer; I discovered a new universe for myself and started to open my mind to new things. A year later, I started thinking more seriously about transitioning my career, so I took a Udemy course on full stack development to see if I would like it before investing in a bootcamp. I joined the Ironhack bootcamp later that same year. Why did you decide to make a career change? Because I wanted to have more space to explore my creativity.  In addition, technology is an area that grows every day and encourages a flexible work culture. I chose web development because I liked the idea of ​​being able to reach the whole world with my work and because of my personality, I like being able to test things I do before presenting them to other people. And being a lawyer has helped me focus on finding solutions and meeting deadlines. After Ironhack I’m currently at an agency and work on several projects, which helps to enhance and develop different skills. I found my job through Ironhack . When I finished the course, I was a little insecure about looking for a job, mainly because I was going to spend three months in Brazil at the end of the year, restricting my job options. But through a "Meet Our Partners" meeting promoted by Ironhack, I met Strangelove, which is a company that combines a remote-first approach together with flexible office spaces and I applied for the position through my career coach, Carla Martin. What I can highlight about my work is flexibility. Now I'm in Brazil, visiting my family, and I can still work. Expats certainly know that this is a huge advantage. And as a front-end developer, I find being able to build things that people in different places can use very rewarding. Advice for future Ironhackers Changing careers is certainly not easy, especially when you spent a lot of time in our previous role.  But it's never too late to pursue your dream and with effort and dedication, everything is possible. If you feel inspired by Mariana’s story and are interested in making a career change, check out our Web Development bootcamp and take the leap!

There are linear life paths and people who have always known what they wanted to do. Jordane Lelong is not one of them. Between passion, questioning, and personal quest, her story is like each of ours: unique . Whether you are a student or a professional in transition, you may find yourself in her story. But regardless of that, her story will not leave you indifferent. And for those who are a little lost in finding their "way," just like Jordane, we invite you to discover the excellent advice that she shares at the end of this article. From Education to Passion Jordane was a young woman of 28, passionate about music and travels "even if it's a bit complicated to travel at the moment." Product designer at Free since last July and co-founder of “ UX Challenger ” that she created with another Ironhacker, Morgane Favchtein , Jordane seems to be really fulfilled today. But it wasn't always like this. Like many, she was asked at 18 what she wanted to do with her life without having any idea how to choose. Her taste for school was limited, "except for English, art and computer science" and without really anyone to help her, she settled on a "safe" choice: that of a career in international trade "because there are more opportunities in this field.” But several years later, with a master's degree in hand, her questions were still there and none of the jobs that her studies could lead to appealed to her. As creative as she is passionate, Jordane turned to the only environment that really attracted her: music. This was followed by 6 years as an event manager organizing concerts all over the world. But far from a life of dreams, as an intermittent performer, she had to face a lot of dedication, difficulties, and sacrifices. At the beginning of 2020, a burnout, and the first confinement later, her job and her health were gone. So it was time to "think about what I wanted to do with my life." Being Inspired by Others Beyond her incredible personality and proven creativity, Jordane's independence and need for freedom is striking. It's not surprising that, while searching on social networks, she was drawn to videos of women explaining how to avoid depending on a salary. That's when she first heard about web design and her future job. Little by little, Jordane trained herself in "no code" tools and started to create her first websites for friends. By the end of 2020, not only was she financially successful thanks to several projects and clients, but she also discovered a new and growing interest in web design and UX/UI issues. Thanks to her thirst for learning and her unlimited curiosity, Jordane managed to completely turn her career around in a few months. So why jump into a bootcamp when everything is so well (re)launched? You probably know the answer. It's sometimes really difficult to fight against imposter syndrome and to succeed in thinking that you are ready to jump into a new sector or job. That's why she joined Ironhack: to learn the basics and apply them on concrete projects, but also to join a community of enthusiasts. She had a lot of hesitations and fears: "3 months is short, what's going to happen after?" "I'm a woman, do I really belong here?" “What if I fail in this area?” Becoming an Ironhacker However, thanks to her determination and the help of an Indeed scholarship created especially for people who lost their jobs during the pandemic, she quickly joined the bootcamp. From that moment on, all her doubts evaporated: theory combined with practice every day was her magic formula. She learned to trust herself by practicing, by "putting her hands in it," and especially by seeing how much she was able to progress day after day. Not to mention the fact that, at Ironhack, you learn in a group. Having feedback, being able to share her questions, and receiving support when things weren't going well were all essential elements in her learning process. Knowing how to do things and knowing how to behave were the two keys that allowed her to unlock the door to the self-confidence she was missing. What asked what the bootcamp did for her, she said: "I came out of it energized. I was a new person, prepared for this new adventure that I was about to embark on. [...] Ironhack taught me that I can start from nothing and go far. [...] I had a really bad experience when I left the music business because of my burn out, my world collapsed and with the bootcamp I proved to myself that I was not an old dinosaur who could not do anything anymore, quite the contrary. Too often we think we are too old to learn new things, change careers, start a business, but we are not. In general, habits condition too much our way of doing things and of apprehending changes. You need to have a good environment and a good mindset to learn new things, that's what Ironhack gave me". Staying True to Herself Jordane finally reconciled her life as a freelancer and a salaried employee by joining an agency just a few weeks after the bootcamp and later, the Free group: "I didn't think I would find a job so quickly. Ironhack has a very good reputation in the UX world and companies are impressed to see the work we manage to do in 9 weeks. I felt confident talking about my background and I wasn't ashamed at all when I walked out even though I didn't have a specialized profile." To stay in line with her convictions (editor's note: she has been vegan for 8 years and practices "0 waste"), she had given herself the mission to accompany entrepreneurs in the field of ecology, health, or well-being. Finally, she finds her usefulness not only in these projects but also at Free on a daily basis. Her job consists in taking a more responsible approach towards the user, putting them at the center of the strategy so that "technology is at the service of people and not the other way around." One might think that Jordane is already quite busy with all this, but that's not knowing her well. As if that wasn't enough, she set up a volunteer project “ UX Challenger ” with another Ironhacker, Morgane Favchtein , whom she met during the training to "give back what she benefited from." The principle is simple: 1 pitch = 1 project. Between the two of them, they regularly launch "design challenges" so that young designers can practice and they offer mentoring after the project is submitted. "The designers in the making are very happy to have constructive feedback that will help them progress". Spontaneity is Key As you can see, her desire to help is matched only by her passion for her job. Here's her advice: "If I had met myself back when I was lost, I would have said to myself: stop overthinking and trust yourself. It's too easy to compare yourself to people, especially on social networks, you have to take a chance and go for it. Ironhack was almost a spur-of-the-moment thing but I had nothing to lose. At first, I felt bad about making a decision so quickly but, in fact, it takes spontaneity to shake things up. If someone had told me a year ago where I would be today I would have laughed. When the bootcamp is over, we continue to learn, that's when the work really starts. Then it's a different kind of learning, you're confronted with reality, with business problems, you have to deal with all parts of the company. You have to tell yourself that every opportunity is good to improve. That's how you learn who you are and what you want to do, or not do.” Want to be like Jordane? Start your UX/UI, web developer, data analyst, or cybersecurity journey today by taking one of Ironhack’s Bootcamps . Our courses will equip you with the essential skills to get started on a career path in the dynamic and exciting tech industry.

Son muchas las personas que deciden reinventar su carrera y dar un giro de 360º a su vida profesional. Este es el caso de Sergio Centellas , un chef especializado en repostería con más de 10 años dedicado al sector que decidió dedicarse al sector tech. Su interés por el sector tecnológico empezó poco a poco al estar rodeado de amistades vinculadas con esta área, especialmente al desarrollo web. Las ganas de aprender más sobre programación y la búsqueda de una mejor conciliación profesional, familiar y social, hicieron que Sergio apostara por realizar el bootcamp de Desarrollo Web en Ironhack Barcelona . En este artículo nos explica su experiencia como ironhacker y las puertas profesionales que le ha abierto justo después de graduarse. Cuéntanos sobre tu experiencia en Ironhack Mi experiencia en Ironhack fue mejor de lo que esperaba al estar en plena pandemia: el profesorado supo adaptar las clases presenciales a remoto rápidamente y el espíritu de unión con el alumnado perdura hasta hoy. Fue un trayecto duro, muchos conocimientos que absorber cada día con altibajos anímicos. Pero todos los teníamos y nos apoyamos los unos a los otros ya fuera ayudando con el código atascado o tomando algo en la terraza del campus. ¿A qué te dedicabas antes de hacer el bootcamp? Me dedicaba al mundo de la hostelería, chef pastelero específicamente. ¿Por qué decidiste hacer un cambio de carrera? La búsqueda de una mejor conciliación profesional, familiar y social. Descubrí el mundo de la programación de forma pasiva: nuevas amistades que eran programadores y, mi por aquel entonces, pareja programadora empezaron a plantar la semilla de la curiosidad que acabó germinando al comienzo de la pandemia. ¿Tenías experiencia previa en código antes de empezar el curso? Solamente lo que había aprendido en Codecademy y algunos videos de Youtube. ¿Crees que haber sido chef te ha ayudado en el mundo de la programación? ¿Cómo? Totalmente. Creo que cualquier experiencia previa al sector IT, en todos los casos, aporta y crea un perfil IT único. En mi caso, al haber trabajado en restaurantes, sé adaptarme a ritmos intensos de trabajo rápidamente, reaccionar rápidamente y buscar soluciones con las herramientas a disposición. Después de graduarte, encontraste trabajo en una startup. ¿Qué destacarías de trabajar en una startup en comparación con otras empresas? Antes de empezar, quiero decir que me considero muy afortunado de trabajar en esta startup, ya que algo que no habría encontrado en una mediana-gran empresa es un mentor: mi jefe (en el departamento de IT solamente somos 3 personas). Se toma el tiempo necesario para hacerme entender los conceptos que me enseña y, sprint tras sprint , va escalonando la curva de aprendizaje para que cada vez aprenda más y mejor. Y esto es algo que, según la experiencia de mis más allegados compañeros de clase, no se suele ver en las medianas-grandes empresas. ¿Qué consejos darías a esas personas que quieren iniciarse en el sector tech y tienen miedo al cambio? Estudia mucho antes de empezar el curso. De esta forma podrás absorber los conocimientos en un plis y que todo haga “click” nada más empezar. Así podrás probar si realmente te sientes cómodo programando y si te pica la curiosidad por saber más: si es así, lánzate a la aventura que cambiará tu vida. Si tienes en mente hacer un cambio de carrera hacia el desarrollo web y te ha inspirado la historia de Sergio, ¡ echa un vistazo a las próximas convocatorias del bootcamp de Desarrollo Web en Barcelona!

Meet Maximilian Soeren Pollak , not only one of our Ironhack Alumni, but also the Hackshow Winner of his Data Analytics Bootcamp . We took the chance to interview him and find out more about his remote experience. Why did you choose to join Ironhack and break into tech? Was there a key moment that helped you make this decision? When I decided that a bootcamp would be the right step for me, I looked for different ones offered by tech schools in Germany. Ironhack was one of the only schools that offered bootcamps in English as well as remote and is verified by the German Government to use the “Bildungsgutschein” there . To be honest, there wasn’t a single key moment that I could pin-point. It was more of a gradual realisation that there could be more done with a computer than just playing games and browsing the Web. I was curious to explore the different opportunities. How did a remote bootcamp fit into your plan? Why did you choose remote instead of an on-campus bootcamp? Learning remotely was great . I would choose it anytime again instead of being on campus. You have the ability to stay late into the night if you want to. On top of that, you don’t waste any time commuting and with today’s technology it felt almost like you were in a room with the other people. With the bootcamp being remote, I got the opportunity to get to know people from all over Europe, which wouldn’t be possible during an in-person Bootcamp. What was your favorite moment at Ironhack? When I was able to help my classmates with their project or any exercise and see their appreciation and that they understood what I taught them. In general, being with like minded people and experiencing our development together was pretty amazing and motivating. You won the Hackshow with your project. Can you tell us a bit about it? It’s a bit complicated to understand, but I will try my best. I created a web based app that will look through over 5k of dividend paying stocks and select the best of them (based on Yield) in regard to the filters and parameters you pick. It then will calculate how many of each stock you need and how long (in years) it would take you can reach your goal with that investment strategy. I chose to develop something that sparks joy for me and fits in my interests. What are you aspiring to do next with your new skills? I want to improve my Hackshow project further, implement new functions, and make it overall better. My plan then is to find a Python -based software engineering position in a startup or Scaleup where I can help them flourish. Thank you for being so open about your experience. Do you have recommendations for anyone who is thinking about changing their life with Ironhack and tech? I would say that learning about tech can benefit everyone, not just people who want to work in tech later; it can also help people that want to level up their current career path. Make sure that the bootcamp you choose is the one that will give you the best chance of doing what you imagine in the end. Make sure that you are in the right mindset when you start the bootcamp: it’s not an easy venture, but it's for sure worth it!

Ruth and Anäis met at Ironhack learning UX/UI . With completely different backgrounds, they teamed up together to deliver an awesome final project to win Hackshow. Ruth is British and has never been in touch with the tech industry; Anaïs comes from France and has previous experience working in the tech industry. Let's take a look at their stories! Why did you choose to join Ironhack and break into tech? I’ve always been in education - from being in school, to uni and then I started working as a primary teacher. I felt I was preparing children for a world I didn’t really know much about . That aroused an interest in changing careers and doing something different. I first learned about UX/UI design from my partner, who is a web developer . The more I learned, the more interested I became and the more I saw that skills I had as a teacher would fit well with the skills of a UX designer. I chose Ironhack because I didn’t want to take a lot of time away from working (and earning money!) to do something new. So, the 9 week course seemed perfect for that. I also wanted to work with people, rather than learn it on my own. I tried a couple of courses online in the past but I really need to be able to interact with "real" people to motivate myself and to get the most of the course. I also know that I work best in a team and that’s why Ironhack was such a good fit for me. On reflection, being able to work with people from all different kinds of backgrounds really helped me grow and learn, much more so than I thought possible. What was the key moment in your life that made you think about taking this step? As I said before, I had heard the term " UX designer " from my partner, but I had always dismissed the idea because the word designer made me think I would be out of my depth because I wasn’t particularly artistic. I now realise that you don’t have to be artistic to be a designer! So I first realised that I was really interested in this when I watched a Youtube video explaining what UX actually is. I saw lots of similarities between being a teacher and surprisingly, it seemed to resonate with my interests and skills. How did a remote bootcamp fit into your plan? Why did you choose remote instead of an on-campus bootcamp? I currently live in Scotland and so my only option was to join Ironhack Remote to do the course without moving to a different city. I have to say that this was a perfect fit for me also because I want to work remotely in the future. I also enjoy that there isn’t any commuting time in the mornings and afternoons but you still get to feel like part of a community. What was your favourite Ironhack moment? Probably during my cohort’s final presentations! Just seeing how far everyone had come and realising that we had actually completed it was surprisingly emotional. There was such a sense of collective achievement. You won the Hackshow with your project. Can you tell us a bit about it? So my final project, which I worked on with my partner Anais, was for a company called Almotech . They are a Spanish startup that have developed a home appliance which can convert used cooking oil into multi-purpose soaps. We had to create an app that allows users to interact with the appliance, as well as coming up with branding suggestions for the company. It was a really interesting project and we learned so much – especially from working with a real company. What are you aspiring to do next with your new skills? Right now I’m finishing fine tuning my portfolio and practicing my UI skills with short daily challenges. I was also lucky enough to be asked to be a teaching assistant on the next course so I’m really enjoying helping (and learning from) the new students. My plans for the future are to start applying for jobs as a UX designer. Ideally I’d like to work in a big(ish) size company which has a team of other designers from whom I can learn. I would also love to work for a company that has a clear purpose and solid values that align with my own – perhaps something environmentally focused. Thank you for being so open about your experience. Do you have recommendations for anyone who is thinking about changing their life with Ironhack and tech? First of all, reach out to Ironhack alumni and find out what their experiences were, especially people who have a similar background to you – whatever it may be. The people I spoke to were really happy to share and gave lots of tips and advice. Secondly, my advice would be to "just do it" (thanks, Nike!)! It’s easy to say, but I found it really hard to do because it meant leaving a career I was comfortable in and also it meant a financial commitment. I wrote so many pros and cons lists and found myself going round in circles until I realised that I just had to do it. I had to take the first step (which meant taking the course) and only then I would know if it was for me. I’m glad to say that it is! Now is the time! Join Ironhack to launch your career in the tech industry. Click here to see course details , remote options , and international campus locations .

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 French and 23 years old; I studied 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 hobby with UX/UI Design . Thank you, Leonard. 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 ways to enter 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 degrees, one from the University of Amsterdam in Classics and Classical Languages and another one from King’s College London in Classical Art & Archaeology. Prior to joining Ironhack, I did a course in digital communication: this was my first experience with the technological world. Then a friend of mine recommended taking a look at Ironhack. This would allow me to break into tech, combining my knowledge of the art industry and tech to create a path forward. I would love to know: what was the key moment in your life that made you think about taking this step? After 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 my decision, I wasn't committed to any company so I was able to focus entirely on the bootcamp. How did a remote bootcamp fit into your plan? Why did you choose remote instead of an on-campus bootcamp? If an online format wasn’t the main option, I would have enjoyed a face-to-face program. But due to the COVID pandemic, 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 about having the chance to meet all the amazing people by Zoom. Hopefully one day I'll meet them in person! I'm curious: w hat was your favourite 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. Can you tell us a bit more about your final project at Ironhack? 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; we decided to create a seamless, intuitive, and 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 won 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 looking 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 taking my UX skills to the art market and creating some opportunities there.