Military ServiceSoftware Engineer
Self-attested. The author confirmed their identity to us. The content itself is unchecked.Starting conditions
- Institution
- Community College
- Major
- Self-taught
- GPA band
- 3.0-3.4
- Graduated
- 2017
- Location
- United Kingdom
- Started late
Limited exposure to the destination field at the start.
The sequence7 steps
- Certification8 moPivotal
Used tuition assistance for cloud certifications
Used tuition assistance for cloud certifications. This took 8 months and was slower than expected.
Start this earlier than feels necessary.
- Coursework1 yr
Worked through a structured CS curriculum after hours
Worked through a structured CS curriculum after hours. This took 12 months and was harder than expected.
Obstacle
Took too heavy a load and the grades showed it.
How it was resolved
Retook the course that mattered most rather than trying to offset it elsewhere.
Start this earlier than feels necessary.
- Project8 moPivotal
Shipped three open-source projects
Shipped three open-source projects. This took 8 months and was slower than expected.
- Application6 mo
First application round — 120 applications
First application round — 120 applications. This took 6 months and was slower than expected.
Obstacle
Applied broadly without understanding what the reviewers actually screened on.
How it was resolved
Narrowed the list and applied early in the cycle rather than late.
- Setback3 moPivotal
No callbacks; resume was reading as non-technical
Obstacle
The plan stalled here, and it was not obvious it would recover.
How it was resolved
Asked the people who rejected me what the specific disqualifier was, then fixed exactly that instead of everything at once.
Start this earlier than feels necessary.
- Networking7 moPivotal
Joined a veterans-in-tech mentorship program
- Job1 mo
Started as a software engineer
Started as a software engineer. This took 1 months and was harder than expected.
Outcome
Associate software engineer offer
Reflection
Would repeat
- Starting the outreach earlier than felt comfortable.
Would skip
- The first application cycle, which I entered underprepared.
Biggest obstacle
Underestimating how long the prerequisite work would take alongside everything else.
What was luck
- One person answered a cold email who did not have to.