Karyn

Living on the south coast of England, Karyn enjoys the relaxing beach atmosphere. 🏖️ Apart from her newfound passion for coding, she finds joy in socializing, attending live music events, and even watching entertaining local shows!

In her previous job, Karyn primarily worked in customer-facing roles. Her responsibilities involved underwriting loans and coaching her colleagues to ensure customers received the best possible outcomes.

Her motivation to learn to code came from a teenage hobby she once had, creating MySpace profiles. Life took her on a different path, but during the COVID era, her priorities shifted, and she realized the importance of building a valuable skill outside of her regular job. That’s when she stumbled upon an Instagram ad for the SheCodes 60-minute free coding class. And with nothing to lose, she decided to give it a shot. Little did she know, that one session would ignite her passion for coding, leading her to enroll in the SheCodes Basics Workshop at the end of the session.  🎉

“Seeing the SheCodes ad reminded me that I enjoyed coding, I love that it puts power behind creativity and that it's a never-ending world of learning and (no pun intended...) development. Whilst I didn't know if I wanted to be a developer, I knew I wanted to give it a go and see where it led me.”

She wasn’t sure if she wanted to be a full-time developer, however, she knew she wanted to give coding a genuine chance and explore where it would lead her. She leaped, excited about the possibilities that lay ahead!  👍

Karyn's experience with SheCodes was exciting and well-structured. As someone who tended to procrastinate, she appreciated the clear and easy-to-follow lessons taught by Matt. The challenges after each lesson were particularly helpful, solidifying her understanding of coding concepts.  💪 

“The lessons were so well put together, Matt is a great teacher who breaks the topics down in easy-to-digest segments and explains everything so beautifully. I loved the challenges after each lesson so you could put what you've just heard about into practice, they really helped the content from the lessons sink in.”

The SheCodes Slack community also played a significant role in her learning journey. The supportive staff provided assistance whenever she needed it, and Karyn found joy in helping other learners with their coding questions too. 👩‍💻 Being part of this collaborative community made the experience even more enjoyable. 🤝

“The Slack community was a major part of the learning experience too, the SheCodes staff were amazing at helping when I really needed it. I even found myself looking into other learners' problems and helping to solve them.”

Moreover, SheCodes encouraged her to find answers independently, using the coding resources available on the internet. This emphasis on self-guided learning empowered Karyn and boosted her confidence in coding. 🌟

SheCodes completely transformed Karyn's life in numerous ways, opening doors she thought were previously closed. 🚪 With a background in customer-facing roles and a lack of experience in tech, Karyn felt limited in her career options. However, SheCodes provided her with the coding skills and confidence she needed to explore new opportunities. 

When her employer advertised a Product Manager role requiring coding knowledge, Karyn saw an opportunity. She shared her coding journey and determination to learn, which impressed the hiring manager and landed her the job! 🎉 Her coding skills proved invaluable, particularly when she was assigned to assist the tech team with new API development, a task that would have been very daunting without the knowledge learned in the SheCodes Pro Workshop.

“My first task in my new role was to assist our tech team with the development of a new API and fortunately, that was the same week we approached API's in SheCodes, good timing!  I'd never heard of an API before and without that knowledge, my task at work would have been almost impossible. “

The impact on her career has been nothing short of remarkable. Karyn more than doubled her salary, a testament to the value her coding skills brought to the table. 📈 As a Product Manager, Karyn's responsibilities involve collaborating with various stakeholders and technology teams to create and refine development roadmaps. Her coding knowledge has broken down communication barriers and allowed her to better understand the capabilities of the business and the technology teams.  👩‍💻

“The knowledge I gained in coding has broken down what would otherwise have been a big communication barrier with our technology teams, to help me understand our capabilities as a business, as well as teaching me the utmost respect for what they do. “

In her new role, Karyn also implements split testing on new ideas and deploys her own code, speeding up the learning process and driving product improvements. She efficiently uses her coding skills for data analysis to make informed and data-driven decisions. 📊

Karyn is now equipped with a powerful set of skills that have opened exciting opportunities and continue to shape her future success.

Karyn has some valuable advice to share with future SheCodes students, drawn from her own life-changing experience. She wants to emphasize that learning to code doesn't necessarily mean aspiring to become a web developer; the knowledge of coding itself can open doors in various fields. Even if you feel like time is a constraint, Karyn explains that investing time in learning a valuable skill like coding is completely worth it.

When it comes to doubting your own abilities, Karyn's advice is to take the leap and give the free coding class a try. You might be pleasantly surprised at what you can achieve. Embrace the journey with an open mind and a willingness to learn. Don't be hesitant to ask questions or seek help along the way; your coding journey is unique, and the SheCodes community is there to support you every step of the way.

We’re very proud of Karyn’s achievements and we hope her story inspires others like her!

🎉 Karyn’s SheCodes Basics Testimonial: 

“Having been almost a total novice, I'm amazed at how easy the skills in SheCodes Basics were to learn. Matt is a fantastic teacher, explaining everything clearly with no jargon and giving me a full toolkit to get started with. I felt fully supported throughout by everyone at SheCodes. My employer has even sponsored me to complete SheCodes Plus and SheCodes React and I can't wait to get started! If you're even slightly interested, give it a go.” 

🎉 Karyn’s SheCodes Plus Testimonial:

“I would recommend this to anyone looking for a new direction and broader horizons. This course has helped me develop a career path and uncover something I’m truly passionate about!.”

🎉 Karyn’s React Testimonial:

“Picking up these courses has opened up doors for me that I never thought I could open. I’m in a career I love and largely have SheCodes to thank! I cannot recommend them enough”