TeacherSoftware Engineer
Unverified. Submitted, nothing checked.Starting conditions
- Institution
- Regional Public University
- Major
- Education
- GPA band
- 3.8-4.0
- Graduated
- 2016
- Location
- Toronto, Canada
- Caregiving responsibilities
- No relevant experience
- Financial need
Limited exposure to the destination field at the start.
The sequence6 steps
- Coursework1 yr 6 moPivotal
Studied programming during evenings and summers
Studied programming during evenings and summers. This took 18 months and was harder than expected.
- Financial1 yr 3 mo
Saved a nine-month runway before leaving teaching
Evidence for this stepObstacle
Could not afford to stop earning during the transition.
How it was resolved
Kept working and extended the timeline instead of taking on debt.
- Project1 yr 1 mo
Built classroom tools that real teachers used
Built classroom tools that real teachers used. This took 13 months and was slower than expected.
- Networking6 mo
Found an education technology community that led to referrals
- Application5 mo
Applied to education technology companies specifically
Applied to education technology companies specifically. This took 5 months and was slower than expected.
Evidence for this stepObstacle
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.
- Job1 moPivotal
Started as a software engineer
Started as a software engineer. This took 1 months and was harder than expected.
Outcome
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.
Estimated cost: Roughly $5,000 across the whole transition.