Tlhologelo Mothogoane from Vereeniging was studying mechanical engineering before the Covid-19 pandemic. Sometime in 2019, he completed a beginner’s online Python course, and it was set on pursuing code as a career. When the world went into lockdown, Tlhologelo chose to use the time wisely, so he sought a way to gain a solid foundation in programming to kick-start his tech career.
After searching online, he found HyperionDev’s Software Engineering Bootcamp. His parents were apprehensive because they wanted him to have a stable career in mechanical engineering. They were unsure about Tlhologelo’s potential career in programming. However, as soon as lockdown regulations relaxed, he convinced his parents to let him enrol to do the bootcamp on-site, full-time.
“I wanted to develop skills for an in-demand job because I know that most companies need programmers. I wanted to travel, and I know that with my programming skills, I will have a lot of work opportunities overseas.”
Tlhologelo’s bootcamp experience
During the bootcamp, Tlhologelo benefitted from HyperionDev’s team of expert code reviews, who gave him feedback that gave him the skills to learn any programming language. He also credits the bootcamp with teaching him how to resolve issues in his coding through developing a programming mindset:
“The code reviewing process was great because it showed me alternative ways of solving programming challenges. The code review really took my coding to a new level. It’s the same process that happens in the industry.”
He credits the challenges during the bootcamp with improving his coding skills. For example, one of his tasks was to create a game with Pygame. He found this challenging at first but became more confident in his abilities once he found a solution and overcame the challenge.
Bridging the gap between education and employment
HyperionDev not only gave Tlhologelo the tech skills he needed to be a successful programmer, but the Career Services team also helped him prepare for the jobseeking process. They helped him spruce up his CV and provided him with the opportunity to complete two mock interviews, which improved his confidence.
One day Tlhologelo saw a vacancy on LinkedIn for a remote intern developer position at German-based Lucid Studio. He applied and landed the job after completing a quiz and two follow-up interviews, one with the senior developer and then with the Lucid Studio team. In this position, he completes tasks assigned by the team and fixes bugs in existing code. Besides fulfilling the duties of his job, he also has side projects in the works:
“I created a Church app which I’m still working on. I used Laravel, tailwindcss, mysq, and PHP. I learned a lot building this app; building a fairly large app alone really teaches to you solve problems, research, and think out of the box.”
Tlhologelo’s future
Tlhologelo’s success story is not over. In the next five years, he hopes to gain experience and work overseas in a more senior position. He aims to solve problems, as he believes that this is how his programming skills improve, which in turn improves his self-esteem regarding his career.
He emphasises his gratitude for the skills needed for a well-paying job because now he can provide for himself and his family. His advice to people with similar career aspirations is to narrow down to the niche tech career they want to pursue and then focus on that aspect. When asked what he thinks about the coding’s potential to improve the world, Tlhologelo said:
“It already has; there has been a lot of life-changing technology that makes life easier for most people and, in the future, I don’t see this changing. I see more technology and innovations that would help a lot of people.”
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If you feel inspired by Tlhologelo’s story and feel ready to embark on your journey toward a fulfilling career in the tech industry, consider registering with HyperionDev here.
Who knows, your success story may be next.
