๐ต๏ธ My Current Focus
In the early stages of my career switch into software engineering, I worked primarily with C#, .NET and Microsoft Azure.
I am now a Software Engineer & Tech Coach at Tech Returners and I create and deliver programs to help underrepresented people refresh their skills after a career break & also programs for current technologists to upskill in Software Engineering and DevOps.
I love building things with the C# programming language and the .NET ecosystem and I enjoy learning about DevOps, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence and Games Development. As a Tech Content & Workshop Creator & Mentor, I help people engage with technology in fun and practical ways, whether theyโre just starting out or looking to improve their skills at any stage of their careers.
I draw on my personal experience of finding my niche in technology, as a former Sustainability and Business Application Consultant with a background in Geography and Environmental Modelling. I currently volunteer as a mentor for those who are underrepresented in tech and/or come from socially disadvantaged backgrounds.
๐ A Brief History: My Technology & Coding Journey
I studied Geography and was exposed to scientific computing at university. I wrote my first line of code whilst trying to find better ways to extract and process some climate data for my climate modelling simulations. After graduation, I worked for a couple of years as a Sustainability Consultant and Business Application Consultant; but found myself being drawn towards technology.
My software engineering interest was kickstarted by Code First Girls, where I attended their Web Development and Advanced Ruby courses at Twitter UK and M&S Digital from Autumn 2017 to Spring 2018. Alongside Code First Girls, early in 2017, I moved laterally from sustainability consulting to technology as a Business Application Consultant tasked with implementing Agile software development for the first time in my current company at the time without prior tech experience. I then went on to receive a fully-funded scholarship to attend a 16-week intensive Software Engineering Bootcamp at Makers in February 2019 and have since been exposed to Software Engineering and DevOps practices from a range of roles and industries such as investment management, e-commerce and tech education.
โญ When I am not doing tech stuff, you can find me:
๐ท Enjoying some film photography with my Instax Mini 11
๐ต Singing as an Alto at the West End Musical Choir
โ๏ธ Reading and relaxing at the coffee shop
๐ฎ Playing games on my Nintendo Switch
Work History
SEPTEMBER 2011 โ JULY 2014
๐ฉ๐ปโ๐ Attended the University of Oxford and earned my Bachelor of Arts in Geography (Upper Second Class Honours – 2.1).
2014 St. Catherine’s College Exhibition Scholarship
SEPTEMBER 2014 โ SEPTEMBER 2015
๐ฉ๐ปโ๐ Attended University College London and earned my M.Sc. in Environmental Modelling (Distinction).
2015 University College London Dean’s List
FEBRUARY 2016 โ APRIL 2017
๐ฑ Junior Sustainability Consultant, EVORA Global Ltd.
Conducted data analysis & delivered sustainability reports.
APRIL 2017 โ FEBRUARY 2019
๐ฉโ๐ผ Business Application Consultant, EVORA Global Ltd.
Within my first year as a Sustainability Consultant and after expressing interest in EVORAโs Sustainability Intelligence Environmental Reporting & Analysis Software-as-a-Service platform, I switched roles to become a Business Application Consultant, tasked with implementing Agile software development for the first time in the company without prior tech experience. I learnt about product management on-the-job, faciliated Scrum ceremonies and worked on business requirements gathering. I engaged daily with developers to adopt the best practices of Agile, testing, continuous integration and iterative software development from scratch with no prior experience of product management.
FEBRUARY 2019 โ JULY 2020
๐ฉโ๐ป Software Engineer, Fellowship Recipient, Makers
As a fellow, I received a fully-funded scholarship to attend a 16-week intensive Software Engineering Bootcamp at Makers, with the eye to fast-track my career in technology.
JULY 2019 โ AUGUST 2020
๐ฉโ๐ป Associate Software Engineer, M&G Plc, Makers Fellowship Program
Started at M&G Plc as a Full-Stack Software Engineer on the Investment Management Technology – Investment Process front office function.
Tech Stack: C# programming language, .NET Core 3.1, Microsoft Azure, Microsoft SQL, Visual Basic (VBA), HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Bootstrap
Testing: NUnit, Fluent Assertions
Version Control: Git / Azure Repo
SEPTEMBER 2020 โ FEBRUARY 2021
๐ฉโ๐ป Software Engineer, Trainline
Trainline is the leading independent rail and coach travel platform selling rail and coach tickets to millions of travellers worldwide. I worked within the Diet Code Team to enable easy eCommerce experiences and highly secure payments for customers.
Tech Stack: C# programming language, .NET Core 3.1, .NET 5, Amazon Web Services
Testing: NUnit, XUnit, Fluent Assertions, Specflow, BDDfy
Version Control: Git / Github
MARCH 2021 โ PRESENT
๐ฉโ๐ป๐ฉ๐ปโ๐ซ Software Engineer & Tech Coach, Tech Returners
I am currently a Software Engineer & Tech Coach at Tech Returners and I create and deliver programs to help underrepresented people refresh their skills after a career break & also programs for current technologists to upskill in Software Engineering and DevOps.
For more details, visit my LinkedIn.