My TIIDELAB Experience 1.0
“He that can have patience can have what he will.”
― Benjamin Franklin
My pursuit of becoming a TIIDELAB fellow began over a year ago. In 2022, I applied for the TIIDELAB fellowship, but unfortunately, my first attempt was unsuccessful. Nonetheless, I was determined not to give up, telling myself, “It’s not over until it’s over.” I decided to embark on a self-taught learning journey and prepared to apply the following year. To stay connected and informed, I followed their social media channels, eager to seize any future opportunities.
In early June 2023, I received a notification from TIIDELAB’s Twitter handle announcing the opening of the registration form for the 2023 cohort. Without hesitation, I quickly registered through their website, Tiidelab.com. I soon learned that this year’s application process was more competitive than ever, with over four thousand initial applicants. Eventually, the numbers climbed to more than seven thousand applicants, among whom only seventy-five would be selected based on merit. Undeterred, I persevered through a rigorous screening process, including the Criteria Cognitive Aptitude Test (CCAT), a special task, and an interview, reaching the final stage successfully. On the 19th of June, 2023, I received a congratulatory email with the title, “Congratulations! You have secured a slot”, I couldn’t contain my joy and excitement, as this opportunity had been a long-awaited dream.
The onboarding ceremony arrived, and it coincided with the celebration of Eid. It was a double celebration for me, and I felt welcomed into the TIIDELAB community with open arms. The expected program schedule for the next six months, from the beginning to the end of our journey, was highlighted to us by the program coordinator, Mr. Shamsudeen Aderoju Adedapo. This aspect shows everyone how well prepared and organized the management is. Additionally, we had the honor of hearing from TIIDELAB’s founder, Mr. Kadir Salami, who delivered an inspiring speech urging us to remain focused, determined, and open to continuous learning throughout our journey to self-reliance. His wise words served not only as guidance for this endeavor but also as valuable career advice.
The technical skills training commenced with a focus on data structures and algorithms. Understanding these fundamentals is crucial for software development as they underpin the methods of data collection, storage methods, and various operations needed to solve problems effectively. Extensively, we were taught arrays, hash tables, linked lists, queues, stacks, and the Big O notations that come with different operations ranging from access, insert, delete, and traversing that happen on the aforementioned types of data structures.
In the third week, we delved into advanced HTML and vanilla CSS. Through practical assignments, we honed our coding abilities and gained valuable insights into our progress. Reviewing my first project during these initial three weeks, I recognized and learned from the mistakes I had made during my self-taught learning phase. To further our knowledge, our coach, Ayodele Samuel Adebayo (Unclebigbag), introduced us to the most demanding and popular CSS framework in the recent tech world, Tailwind CSS. Our skills were put to the test by building our portfolios using Tailwind CSS, furthering our understanding of the framework. To see my portfolio, click here.
While technical skills are essential, TIIDELAB emphasizes the importance of soft skills as well. They recognize that professional development extends beyond technical expertise; therefore, every Friday during our visual or physical meetups, we receive instruction in various soft skills. These included cultivating a positive work attitude, effective team-building strategies, presentation skills, and technical writing. In one of the sessions, Mr. Salami Kadri, the founder, enlightened us on securing future income and identifying opportunities in any environment. Constant practice, putting our work out there, accepting feedback, and embracing challenges are a few of the many lessons I learned during his lecture.
Beyond the classroom, the physical meetups on Fridays provided enjoyable opportunities to interact with other fellows. These gatherings fostered knowledge-sharing, idea exchange, networking, and friendly competition through the “head of the house challenge.” I am proud to be part of the BITMASTERS team, having won three challenges within the first five weeks.
Wrapping up, I am immensely grateful to the entire TIIDELAB management team for providing such an incredible platform for support, care, and personal growth. I extend my heartfelt thanks to the council of elders, Mr. Shams, Unclebigbay, the tech support team, and all the guests who have contributed to our journey so far. Special appreciation goes to Mr. Salami Kadri for creating this remarkable platform and empowering Nigerian youth for a brighter future; indeed, you are training world leaders. Lastly, I would like to acknowledge the generous support of our sponsors, the Industrial Training Fund Nigeria (ITF) and the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA). Together, they have helped pave the way for a promising future.
Thank you for reading about my first month's experience at TIIDELAB. Stay tuned for my next month's experience.
