my first blog post

How I Transitioned From an Accounting Student to a Front-End Developer

March 16, 2022

⏱ 5mins read

In this post, I will be writing about my transition into the tech field, how I landed my first Web developer job, resources, tips.


My background

I am a recent graduate of Nnamdi Azikwe University, Awka, Anambra state. I studied Accounting & Finance as my major in university.


The journey

I wrote my first HTML code in September 2018 and it was super exciting to see my first “Hello World” display on the browser screen. It was my first exposure to what the web was all about. Growing up as a kid I wasn’t exposed to computers to play around with.

My university usually has a break/holiday of about three(3) months after every session. My first 3 years were focused on learning accounting concepts and how it applies to real-life businesses.

The holiday after my third year in school, I began looking for internship slots where I could intern as an accountant and get real-life experience. I applied to the Big 4 accounting firms for an internship slot. I even applied to some small audit and accounting firms, but I couldn’t secure an internship.

So I got up one morning in September after a month of job hunting for an internship. I went to a firm in victoria island, Lagos where I submitted my application, this was not an accounting firm but a company that I wanted to work in their accounting section. I asked the HR “ why is it so difficult for me to secure a slot for internship” and this was her reply,

“since you have been searching for a slot and you can’t find, why not pick up a skill in the tech field. The tech field can accommodate anyone willing to learn, build and grow”. And that was how it began

I went home confused, thinking about what the tech field is all about, I thought if I knew about Microsoft office, I was in the tech field already.

I picked up my laptop which was an HP Stream 11" Notebook , which I use for browsing, typing assignments and watching Korean movies lol. I made some research about the tech field and the one I felt I would be interested in.

Everything was not making any sense to me. Then I remembered that I have a programmer friend of mine. I quickly reached out and booked an appointment with him.

The next day, he agreed to meet and I told him that I am looking into going into the tech field but I am a bit confused because the field is wide.

So he asked me some questions like: do you have an eye for design?, do you write good articles and so many more, but I didn’t fit into any question at that moment, but one thing I knew was that I wanted to bring concepts to life.

I asked him how difficult it was to learn programming, He then asked also if there was someone in the tech field I admire. At that time I only knew about Ire Aderinokun because I read about her on blogs and newspapers.

Then he told me to let him show me something, he went to Ire Aderinokun website, went to google console which at that time I didn’t know what it was, he clicked the element section and edited the part that ire aderinokun showed and asked me to write my name LoL.

I wrote my name Amaechi Amarachi and it showed on the screen. Then Stephen said that is how simple programming is. That was how I developed an interest that eventually led to a passion for front end development and the journey began.

I went home super excited about my new adventure. I started researching for resources to help me out, then I saw Github Education and many more. Every learning I did was online so I can call myself self-taught.

Resources

Here are some of the resources I have used in my journey.

YouTube


How was my learning process like


Ever since I made the tweet, I have gotten tons of DMs about how I transitioned and what my learning process was like.

As earlier stated, I wrote my first HTML code in September 2018 which was my holiday period. I started learning with youtube videos and freecodecamp.

Due to the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) strike that started on Monday, November 5, 2018, and ended February 8, 2019. I was supposed to resume back to school in November but couldn’t because of the strike. So this was a perfect opportunity to study more.

I resumed as a final year student in February 2019. The time I had during the holiday to code was no longer there because I had to focus on what was on ground, which was my forthcoming degree exams, final year projects, and defense. With that, I decided I was going to dedicate 3hours daily to learn how to code, which I did.

Fast Forward to November, I have taken my degree exams already and I have also defended my project which was titled: Corporate governance characteristics and cash value added: Evidence from listed deposit money bank.

Next phase began: JOB HUNT


In December, I relocated back to Lagos, Nigeria from Awka, Anambra after my degree exams. Friends and relatives started asking the usual question “after school, what’s next?” Initially, my response to this was that I wanted to use the first 3 months of 2020 to study and brush up my skills so I can be prepared to apply for a front-end developer role.

I spoke with my best friend about it, and he said WHY wait till 3 months, why don’t you start applying now and learn on the job. Then I summoned the courage to start applying to different vacancies I see on job boards, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc knowing fully well I didn’t have solid experience in this field.

Guess who couldn’t secure even an interview? Me.

When I noticed how things were going I went back and devised a plan B, and what was this Plan B?

It was looking for jobs within my network.

So I started reaching out to some friends and mentors telling them that I need to get some experience in the tech field. After doing this for a week, I started getting various responses on available job openings.

Based on this I secured two interviews and got two offers.

But before I put an end to this article I would love to say a few more words to people trying to transition into tech:

  • Be consistent: Put in quality hours
  • Learn in public
  • Attend meetups
  • Go for events
  • Network with people when you attend events and meetups
  • Seek good mentorship, it pays off
  • Share your knowledge in any way you feel works best for you
  • Never look down on yourself
  • Don’t overtask yourself so it won’t lead to burnout.
  • Never compare yourself with someone or look down on your progress

I want to say a big Thank You to everyone who had a great impact on my tech journey.

Thanks for reading.

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WRITTEN BY

Amarachi Amaechi

© 2021 Built with 💜 by Amarachi Amaechi (aka Amycruz)