My Andela Journey

Alex Mochu
Aug 28, 2017 · 2 min read

“Even though you fed up, you better keep your Head up” — Tupac Shakur

This is my first day of Andela Self Learning Bootcamp week one. The past two months has been a period of intensive learning and challenging tasks to help me become a better software developer and also test me on the way. My most grueling moment was when I had to study the Andela homestudy in order that I could prepare for test that could determine if I could proceed to the next stage which was the interview.

Before applying to Andela I was a Freelance Wordpress website designer based in Nairobi, Kenya. My work involved designing websites using the Wordpress CMS (Content Management System). It largely entailed customizing Wordpress themes and a little Html/CSS thrown here and there, nothing fancy. On May 2016 as I was going through Ihub blog , I remember coming across a post that really caught my eye. It was about the Andela program but time it was an All Female Cohort Invitation meaning they were only accepting ladies at that time.

Up to this point I could barely write a python script. I did a little research about the company and one thing I did notice is the amount of intensity with there program. This meant I had to be ready for the challenge before applying. I took to the internet, Googled around for free online resources that could help me start with the basics then advance.

Some of the online platforms that I joined to help learn Code were Free Code Camp, Codecademy and Khan Academy. One thing this online platforms had similar with Andela Homestudy is they both involved self learning. Which can be quite challenging at times especially if you don’t have a mentor to guide you through. But the Homestudy stood out because it is an all round Computer science study course covering almost all aspects of software engineering, while the rest focus largely on how to code.

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