Faith Ikhidero is a software engineer, a recent graduate of ALX, a mother and a wife who is constantly working on improving herself. Her areas of interest include back-end development and cloud computing. I reached out to her because I believed that we could all stand to gain from her experience. She spoke to me about her decision to make a career shift, the difficulties she encountered while completing the programme, her accomplishments and the aftermath of her graduation. The transcript of our conversation is available below.

Can you tell me a bit about who you are and you do?

I am Faith Ikhidero and I am a software engineer. I am currently learning about cloud technologies on Amazon web services and Google cloud. As of last month, I was working as a software engineer but I resigned to focus on my cloud development journey.

It's nice to meet you, Faith. I understand that you were in another industry before you transitioned into tech. What industry was that?

I was in the sales and marketing industry. First off, I would like to say that I am graduate of pure arts. I studied English and literary studies in the university and upon graduation, I started working in various sales and marketing roles. I made the decision to move into the Tech industry in March 2021.

Why did you make that decision?

Sales is a lucrative industry but after COVID struck, I got a lot of insights on how to remain relevant. I noticed that the industries that weren’t affected were Tech and Finance. It seemed to me that they were more stable and I wanted to be in those kinds of spaces that weren’t shaken by pandemics. I wanted to develop more than just average skills in an industry that would stand the test of time and that was Tech for me. Tech is the future and tech is now.

What was the first step you took in your transition?

I didn't even know what the possible careers in Tech were so I slept on Google a lot. If there was someone checking out my search history, they would have been laughing at me because of some of the searches I made. I didn’t really come up with anything specific because tech is so broad but, what was readily available in terms of training was frontend and backend software development. I felt that since writing code seemed to be the basics of Tech, I was going to learn. And if I eventually wanted to move into cloud development or machine learning, it all still boiled down to starting from software engineering.

Was ALX your first stop or did you try out other platforms?

I started off with the Ingressive for good software engineering programme and I chose the backend track. I have always been partial to backend because I wouldn’t excel in design as much. I am a plain person and paying attention to colours and other visual intricacies mattered if I was going to go into frontend. But when it comes to functionalities, you can count me in. I just love to fix things around the house like light bulbs and damaged sockets and see them function. I felt that backend was a way to express my love for fixing things and to not only use my hands but my brain as well. Two weeks into the ingressive for good programme, I found ALX and it became my second stop.

You stopped the Ingressive for good programme completely, right?

Yes I did. In fact, I stopped the ingressive for good programme while trying to get into ALX. I was in the second cohort of ALX and getting into the programme then was much more difficult than it currently is. We had to build four websites and I built five to get in.

Wow, I imagine that you had to learn web development first?

Yeah, the good thing was that they had some instructions for us to follow. The instructions covered about 30 percent of the work and the research I did was about 70 percent. It was cool that we had those instructions but we had to look for how to apply the instructions and as always, Google was my best friend.

What was it like at the beginning of the ALX programme?

I have to start off by saying that ALX is about the craziest thing I have done in my entire life. Getting in was so difficult and they said that it was just the tip of the iceberg. But I felt that since I was able to get in successfully, I would be able to make it through the programme just as well. The first two weeks were easy, but it turned into the complete opposite right after. I really had to struggle in the first three months because it was my first time having to do anything with code. Coming from my background, the only thing I knew about programming languages was that they are the basics of how everything in technology worked. It was difficult trying to move from the stage of not knowing into taking on so much at once and at a point, it became too much to handle.

When it became too much to handle, what did you do?

Well, I probably quit more than fifty times within the one year period. I would give up one day and get back at it on the next. C programming was very challenging and sincerely, I survived it by looking at other people’s work. I didn't take the time to learn it or put much effort because I was scared. I had never been a maths person and I ran away from even the most basic maths. No matter how much you try to avoid it, software engineering requires maths in some way. ALX also had its way of doing things in the sense that there were specific rules on the things we were allowed to use and how we were supposed to write code and I was barely making headway. I couldn’t wait to get C behind me so I was looking forward to python and specialisation. I struggled a lot, and at some points, I understood but at other points, I didn't. All I did was try to survive in the programme to get to the point where I would start enjoying it. I had started so many things without finishing and I wanted to give my best to the programme. Whenever I gave up, I just reminded myself of my reason for being in the programme and motivated myself to try hard until I no longer could.

I heard that C still shows up in the other parts of the curriculum, so how did you cope?

Yeah, they found a way to insert some bits and pieces of C in the second and third sprints but it wasn’t very regular. After a while, I met some colleagues that really loved C and I found it really strange that they loved something I regarded as difficult. I would advise anyone currently struggling with C to look for those people who enjoy it and become their friends. Even being around people who can’t stop bragging about what they know will make it easier for you to understand things because they can’t stop talking about it or they truly want to help. When you don’t understand, you can easily ask them to point you in the right direction.

At what point in the programme would you say you got very confident that you were going to finish the programme?

That was in the third sprint, system engineering devops, my favourite. Configuration and getting things to work were the first part of the third sprint and it was amazing. At that point, everything is personalised. I had to look for how things could work and Google and Stack overflow were my saviours. Whoever created Stack overflow and all those who contribute should be given awards. Someone else had already encountered whatever error I was encountering, so I was able to solve problems and get things working. ALX made python in the second sprint almost as hard as C but everything just came together for me in the third sprint.

When you say you enjoy fixing things, is debugging part of that?

Yes, I enjoy debugging. You’ll find me anywhere an error shows up. I like to know why one thing is working and another thing isn’t. When I use google, I search for the keywords in whatever error it is I receive and that has helped a lot. If I get error 504, I search for error 504 exactly.

What would you say was your lowest moment in the programme?

Even though I enjoyed the third sprint so much, at some point, we started our foundations portfolio project and I had had it up to here. If I say that I survived on my own, I would be lying. My husband practically held my hands and supported me even if he didn't know what I was doing. He always encouraged me to try harder and that really helped me. I was struggling so much in the third sprint and my highest score was in system engineering devops but everything else was suffering. I had even abandoned ALX to go explore other options, one of which was data science but I just couldn’t find my footing. One night, I woke up and started thinking about all the times I didn't know much, all the times I had failed and they haunted me. I was doing ALX almost twenty four hours a day, the entire seven days a week and it didn't make sense anymore to continue. I sent Maarten van Middelaar, ALX’s technical mentor, a message on slack, telling him that I was going to quit. I had lost touch of my own self and I just wanted to be sure that I knew what I was doing. I needed to leave the programme and I started crying. That was my lowest moment.

So, how did Marteen help you?

The good thing is that he didn't get to read my message. Before day break, I had deleted it. This was because I got requests to join two groups for the portfolio project while I slept. I was surprised that some people thought I had something to offer even when I felt I didn't know anything. In the second group were two people I admired, who I hadn't spoken to before, Obed and Oluwatobi. That was what created the light that tore through the darkness I was feeling at that point in time and I was able to get back into the programme.

Was there a strategy you adopted after you figured out the flow of the programme?

I had a nursing mother strategy considering the fact that my daughter was barely five months old when I started. She needed a lot more time and attention than ALX so I had to fit my learning schedule into her inactive periods which were usually while she slept or mumbled to herself. I picked up my laptop during any small space I had. I was sleep deprived from taking care of a tiny soul who completely depended on me and a programme I had to complete. So it was twice the struggle. I noticed that when you skip something in ALX, you might as well have skipped the next five topics because everything is built on top of each other. I jumped a lot and I suffered for it. I advise that you should make sure to do the projects that don’t have advanced tasks before the second deadline because you can't get extra credit for them. Try to always make 80 percent and at the same time, level up with enough knowledge. And always go back to the tasks you haven’t done even after the deadlines have passed and you're far ahead in the programme because they’ll help with your score.

I always tell my colleagues to network because it can really help, not just for the prospect of having people to refer you for jobs later in the future, but to have people to move along with in the programme. What do you think about that?

I discovered late that networking was very important. ALX forced us to do team projects from the very beginning but I did them just for the sake of doing them. I had always been a solo flyer and I remained one for the most part of the programme. During the portfolio project with Obed and Oluwatobi, I got to make two new friends and I met Francis Emediong who is still my friend till date. In fact, even when I started my job and there was something I didn't understand, he helped. We met when I reviewed his work once and the next time he needed a review, he came straight to me instead of announcing it to the general group. We started talking from there. I discovered that he was a very brainy person and wished I had used his big brains throughout the programme. I enjoyed the last sprint because I had people I could talk to when I was confused and it was easier to flow. I suffered alone in the first three sprints and to avoid that, please network as much as you can.

Are there any areas of your life that the ALX programme has affected positively?

When I joined other programmes, I honestly couldn’t relate to people’s complaints because I had done much harder things. I didn’t enjoy working without deadlines because working with deadlines kept me on track at ALX. Adapting was also easy because I came from a world that was very firm and every skill I learned came into play. ALX made me more than a software engineer. It built me into a researcher, a problem solver, someone that can withstand pressure and a very competent person.

What was it like getting to finally graduate after twelve months?

Graduation felt like a dream come true for me. It actually brought tears to my eyes because I could still recall all the times I almost quit. Having gone through all of that strain, I was happy to see the results of what I had put so much effort in. The end of the line was something I had always imagined from afar and it felt surreal knowing that I had finally gotten there. I had been looking forward to graduation all through the programme and when it finally came, all the positive emotions you could possibly think of came rushing.

How did your job search go?

I started my job search while I was in the programme to try my luck. When I did, nothing worked and I started getting imposter’s syndrome. Then I reminded myself that I had gotten to the point where I knew how to learn and I shouldn't feel disappointed for my failures because I just needed to prepare very hard. So I continued applying and I got my first interview two days after graduation. I got the job the following day.

Wow, congratulations. So, what was it like being an entry level backend developer?

It was challenging. I knew my way around Node.js a little and they needed someone who knew what they were doing. I had been running from Node.js because of all the packages you had to install but when I started the job, I remembered that Francis is a Node.js pro and it was easier for him to assist me. The job was basically fixing things in Node.js applications and building websites for clients and I had to adapt to a new skill environment. I love Python and the flask framework and I thought that I would get to stay in my comfort zone but it didn't work out that way. I instead had to face Node.js that I had been running away from. Working really felt good because I was able to challenge myself to know more and dig deeper.

Can you tell us about what you’re currently working on?

I resigned from my job so that I could continue to sharpen up my skills and develop new ones. I am currently learning about the cloud and exploring my cloud options. I am participating in the Google Africa Developers Scholarship and the She Builds CloudUp programme, exclusively for women to learn about the AWS cloud. I took the certified clouds practitioner exams, and I passed. I am hoping to take part in the AWS solutions architect scholarship and by God’s grace, I will start applying for not just developer roles, but cloud roles as well and devops roles which are a mix of writing code, deployment and maintenance of the cloud. Before the end of the year, I should have all of the three certifications cleared.

Wow, your journey has been really inspiring because you just keep moving forward and improving. Personally, I would like to explore my options in Machine learning and Artificial intelligence. Seeing you continuing to upgrade after the ALX programme, I know that I can do that too so thank you very much.

You’re welcome

Is there anything else you would like to say?

I would like to remind everyone that ALX puts a strain on everybody whether they are beginners or seasoned developers. You will feel stretched, tired, like you can't go anymore, not just once or twice. For someone like me, who came from a pure arts background, this was a huge step for me and I think you can tap into some of my courage. Determination and encouragement from my husband, my sister and my friends had a whole lot to do with how I got here. If you can, have as many cheerleaders and supporters around you so that when you feel like you can't go on, they will remind you of why you started and encourage you to keep going. As one of the very few women who graduated from my cohort, I know that we can beat the odds if we keep striving. Anyone who is like me, a mum, a wife or is responsible for other people other than themselves, I want you to know that you can do it and you only need to put in some extra work than another person. That's all it takes and at the end of the day, you will excel.

Thank you very very much for giving me a bit of your time and for telling us your story. It will benefit those of us in the programme and others hoping to break into Tech. Thank you for motivating us by being a symbol for what is achievable during and after the programme.

You’re welcome George. Thank you for reaching out.

Thank you for reading. You can connect with Faith on twitter at RedSpinel and with me at george_veno. I hope to see you in my next article. Please, have a great week.

NB: Faith and I are not affiliated with or endorsed by ALX. The opinions and views we share are purely ours.