珍·奥彭肖不是一般的软件工程师. 她告诉维多利亚奈特转行的事, the benefits of a coding boot camp and leading the charge for more women in the tech sector.
A few years ago, Jen Openshaw sat at home in deepest Lancashire wondering what to do.
而她的两个孩子却难得地睡在一起, Openshaw was thinking not of the multitude of tasks that await all parents of young children but actually something far weightier – namely what to do with her career.
“老实说? 我很害怕，”她回忆道. “工作的世界感觉如此遥远. I’d moved 200 miles across the country which meant that my previous job working in the heritage sector was no longer an option. 我现在住在世界上一个非常乡村的地方. And I just thought to myself that it’s just not going to be possible to have an interesting career while also being the best mum I can be to my sons.”
几年过去了，奥彭肖一生中第一次被证明是错的. 愉快地在BAE系统数字智能公司担任软件工程师, 她高兴极了, 或者更惊讶的是, 事情的结果. 一个编码器? 真的? 在剑桥大学学习了历史，并获得了国家职业资格证书美容治疗二级? 嗯,是的.
那她是怎么来的?
破解密码
奥彭肖对技术的兴趣并不是最近才出现的现象. 甚至在她之前为国民信托工作期间, 数字世界的诱惑已经开始产生相当大的影响.
“There had been many times where I wished I’d studied computer science,” she admits. “这看起来很令人兴奋，所有的酷孩子都在做这件事, 这也是孩子们在学校里学到的. I’d liked that side of things while I was playing around with Microsoft Excel in the ever so slightly techie elements of my previous jobs.”
But there’s a big difference between managing a couple of spreadsheets and fully fledged coding – how did she make the leap? It transpires that while on her ‘career break’ – “I hate that phrase because it is absolutely not a break being a full time parent” – she had a chat with a friend who suggested she take a look at coding boot camps. 起初，她有些不知所措.
“我真的不知道它们是什么，”她笑着回忆道. 于是她解释说，这是为像我这样的人准备的, 没有技术背景的人, 在软件工程或数据科学等职业中接受再培训.”
在谷歌上搜索了几次之后，奥彭肖就迷上了它. “我开始做一些免费的在线编程教程. It’s a cliché but most engineers can remember the first time they make ‘hello world’ appear on their screen – it is such a satisfying feeling to write yourself some code. 很激动人心, 比如解决一系列的谜题, 我从一开始就很喜欢.”
还有很多潜在的工作机会, a decent salary and the fact she could pursue it from her new home in the countryside and suddenly, 仿佛被施了魔法, Openshaw had found the challenging and stimulating career that she had started to give up on.
快乐的人
Most coding boot camps are full time and take place over an intensive 12 or 14 week period. While their graduates emerge with the skills to be a web developer or software engineer, 例如, 这种形式对奥彭肖来说不是一个可行的选择, 考虑到她为人父母的责任和家里的偏远位置.
All was not lost, however, as salvation emerged in the form of a part time boot camp offered by 全球最大的博彩平台编码 是在晚上和周末发生的吗.
不像他们的军队, coding and digital boot camps are renowned not for their fierce emphasis on discipline but instead focus on short term, intense training sessions designed to prepare students for the practical reality of a career in tech. And given 全球最大的博彩平台编码’ oft-stated commitment to increase diversity in the sector, 这是, 奥彭肖说, “a no brainer” to sign up – something she did a year later having waited for her youngest to get that little bit older.
启动并运行
作为主席 大全球最大的博彩平台网络咨询小组 I often have the good fortune to meet inspiring people and learn about their work across the North West. 该地区现在有一个GCHQ办公室和一个超过10人的繁荣社区,000家数字和科技企业, 从初创企业到谷歌和IBM等全球企业, 全球最大的博彩平台现在是…的基地 五分之一 在伦敦以外以科技为重点的职业中.
在发布会上 大全球最大的博彩平台数字蓝图 I was introduced to the work of 全球最大的博彩平台编码 and soon we were locked in discussion about bringing some of their best graduates, 像奥彭肖, 进入BAE系统数字智能系统. Although some of our new recruits come in via apprentice schemes she started work in a full time role and was able to hit the ground running.
“I am now working as a software engineer on a team for one of our national security clients,她解释道. “The skills I learned at the boot camp enabled me to start being a real life software engineer, 但是能够继续学习是非常棒的, 尤其是在工作如此灵活的情况下. The atmosphere all along has been so supportive and positive in terms of me continuing my development – whether that’s through the team mentoring me, the tech lead explaining things to me and being able to do a lot of training courses as well.”
这些女孩可以
同时也适应了她的“日常工作”, Openshaw has been very much focused on encouraging more women into tech – especially younger girls who are considering their exam choices. 让我们面对现实——还有很多事情要做.
根据 最近的数据 由高等教育统计当局提供, 在英国高等教育中，只有35%的STEM学生是女性. 2017年至2018年, 39%的物理科学专业学生是女性, and the percentage of female students studying mathematical sciences was just 37 per cent. 同样——而且令人震惊地——公正 0.6% 2020年，有一半的女学生在GCSE级别学习计算机科学.
“It’s hard to say this without sounding cheesy but encouraging more women into tech is something I feel so strongly about,奥彭肖说。. “从我在BAE系统公司工作开始, 我已经把它捡起来了, run with it and expand it into different directions in order to reach as many people as possible.”
因此，她现在要对我们与 全球最大的博彩平台的数字是大全球最大的博彩平台的数字和科技贸易机构 数字她, a programme launched by 全球最大的博彩平台的数字 that aims to tackle the shortage of women employed in the region's digital and tech industry.
“例如, just the other day I had a conversation with a woman who reached out to me via LinkedIn. 她也是两个孩子的妈妈，她读过书 我的博客 她想和我谈谈她可能会如何追求类似的职业转变. This sort of stuff just makes me burst – knowing there are people out there who are seeing it is possible and giving it a go themselves. 对于年轻女性, the sheer power of seeing someone who looks like them in this industry cannot be underestimated.”
作为自己的榜样, Openshaw is already well on her way to fulfilling her immediate ambition to become “a really great engineer” but that’s just for starters. When she says she wants to “help more women into tech” you absolutely believe her – it will be fascinating to see what she does next.
