Ruby for All

From Bootcamp to Community Advocate and Mentor

Mar 16, 2023

Julie, a Junior Developer, shares her transition from Pharmacist to coder after attending a Bootcamp. She discusses challenges faced at her first job, struggles with programming, and the importance of networking. Highlights include falling in love with programming, joining the Ruby community, and advice for newcomers in the tech industry.

27:30

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Episode guests

Julie

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Episode notes

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Quick takeaways

Julie emphasizes the value of communal support and collaborative learning in solidifying her passion for programming.

Transitioning from pharmacist to software engineer, Julie acknowledges imposter syndrome while celebrating personal growth in team contributions and project ownership.

Deep dives

Discovering Passion for Programming Through Community Learning

Julie shares her journey of rediscovering Ruby through a community learning program after initially dabbling in programming in 2019. She highlights the importance of communal support and guidance, such as in a code and play program she attended. Her practical experience building projects like Tetris with collaborative learning helped solidify her passion for programming.

Introduction

2min

Journey with Ruby on Rails and Bootcamp Experience

6min

Building Tetris, Bootcamp Reflection, and Interview Experience at Maria Cookatomy

3min

Navigating Challenges and Growth in a New Career

6min

Navigating the Ruby Community and the Importance of Sharing Learning Experiences

3min

Navigating the Tech Industry: Advice for Newcomers

6min

On this episode of Ruby for All, Julie recently decided to go back to the gym, and Andrew has been chilling and focusing on things in his life that he hasn’t taken care of. But today, we’re going to have fun, like we do every episode, and Andrew is going to interview Julie and ask her questions about being a Junior Developer and get her honest insight into things Juniors are going through. We’ll find out what Julie’s job was before she became a coder, her Bootcamp experience, challenges she had at her first job, struggles with programming and how she overcame them, and the importance of networking and asking questions. Hit download to hear more!

[00:02:13] How long has Julie been writing Ruby on Rails?

[00:03:04] Julie shares her journey from being a Pharmacist to becoming a coder.

[00:04:03] What did Bootcamp do well at teaching Julie and what could have been better?

[00:06:31] When did Julie start to fall in love with programming? Also, she tells us about Code in Place, and her final project she built, which was Tetris.

[00:08:48] Julie tells us she wouldn’t change anything about bootcamp, and she explains how her experience with interviewing was like.

[00:11:31] We hear some of the challenges Julie had at her first job right out of bootcamp, and one of the high ones was imposter syndrome.

[00:13:45] Find out when Julie first started getting into the Ruby community and when she joined WNB.rb.

[00:14:34] Andrew explains he had no community when he first started in Ruby, so he got into podcasting and conferences.

[00:15:36] Julie and Andrew met ten months ago at RailsComp 2022, and Julie shares how the past year has been, as well as her favorite moments.

[00:18:11] We hear some of Julie’s struggles with programming over the past year and how she overcame them, and how Andrew became aware of Julie through her Tweets.

[00:20:55] Julie has something to say about sharing learnings, and she shares advice to the person out there who’s in the same place she was, either right before or right after going to bootcamp, and the first thing out of the box is network.

[00:23:24] We end with Julie telling us how people have told her they appreciate her asking questions and why that’s so important, and Andrew praises her for her work in the community, mentoring people, and starting a book club.

Panelists:

Andrew Mason

Julie J.

Sponsors:

Links:

Julie J. Website
Code in Place 2023

WNB.rb