19 Sep 2019 - Sumi Prajapati
One morning I applied for an academy program in Insight Workshop (IW), a Software Company located in Naxal, Kathmandu. The deadline was just the night before. Luckily my application was counted. (Big thanks to my dearest friend Rachana for this). After a rigorous application process I was selected for the program. I also applied for this program from Hawkins Fellowship Program by Code for Nepal. I got selected as a Hawkins fellow from there too. I can’t express in words the feelings that I had that day. I was so excited and nervous about this journey.
Everyone was so welcoming at IW. We were introduced with previous batch’s students, mentors and everyone else there. They shared their experiences and motivated us on the very first day. More than 50% of the trainees were girls; it was a happy feeling. I was around people with the same dreams and passion to become a future Full Stack Developer. Positive vibes were coming from everyone that we were there to learn. It was a different feeling.
The first month went by so fast. We learned the basics of everything from Html, CSS to Python, Django Framework. We learned how the software development process works in the real IT world. Alongside programming, we also learned problem-solving, research and time management skills. We were given assignments and challenging tasks too to boost our skills. we have to complete them by the deadlines. There were exams too. Every Friday we had guest lectures from industry experts who shared their experiences. I loved how they shared everything with us, making us feel like their own family. They wanted us to grow together and we learned so many things from every person every single day. Every single day was productive. It wasn’t hectic at all; time was feasible, the environment was co-operative and supportive.
In the last four weeks of this academic period, we were assigned a team project based on the concepts which we had learned earlier. Although I entered as a very beginner, in just two weeks of experience and proper guidance, I was able to build a complex web application. This gave me a lot of confidence exponentially raising my passion for software development.
Looking back to those three months, these were the most beautiful and exciting days of my life, as my career kickstarted. Currently, I am working at Insight workshop as a Software Engineer Trainee after completing these 3 months of the journey. I am so thankful for Insight Workshop as well as Code for Nepal for seeing potential in me and providing me with this opportunity.