Alex Dresco — Software Engineer
Alex is a Software Engineer at Ravelin, she started attending codebar in May 2018 as a student before completing the Makers Bootcamp. She then started organising the Oxford codebar chapter before moving to London and becoming an organiser for that chapter.
You can find Alex on the internet at:
1) What did you want to be growing up?
I didn’t really know. I’ve struggled to find a career that felt like the right fit and remained interesting.
2) When did your interest in tech start?
I worked in Finance and then in recruitment where everyone always talked about “how computers will take over and we won’t have jobs”. I thought working on the other side would be more future proof. I gave it a go and I really enjoyed it!
3) How did you make the transition to being a developer?
Learned online with freeCodeCamp first and some other online resources. I found so many free resources online for beginners but struggled to go further than the basics. I then went to codebar’s workshop every week I could get a spot. That’s where I learned about Makers from one of the coaches who completed the bootcamp a few years before. I applied and got my first job through their Apprenticeship scheme with Elsevier.
4) What was your first development job?
Software Engineer at Elsevier via Makers.
5) What is your favourite thing about being a developer?
Solving problems all day long! Working in a methodical and logical way.
6) What is the coolest project you have worked on and why?
Probably my current job! We’re a fraud prevention company and use ML to prevent crime. It’s pretty cool to use my job to fight “the bad guys”.
7) How did you get involved with codebar?
First as a student for months, then I always said I wanted to give back as I literally wouldn’t be in this career. I coached and then became an organiser!
8) Why do you keep coming back to codebar?
The students having really good sessions and being really grateful. The feeling I get when I coach!
9) What are your plans for the future?
Ideally, I’d love to have my own company, I find that the barrier to entry into a tech career is still too high and scary. How many times people have said it’s super hard and that’s why they won’t try it. I’d love to have some kind of platform that’d help solve that issue. But for now, more learning, more coding!
10) What advice would you give to aspiring developers?
Don’t give up, it’s so normal to struggle. The best advice I got was “don’t copy paste code you don’t understand”. It works!
