Ahmed

WHAT MADE YOU WANT TO PURSUE A CAREER IN DEVOPS AND SITE RELIABILITY ENGINEERING?

I did my degree in Electrical Engineering, but once I graduated I found there weren’t many jobs in that field and career growth was limited. I knew that software development was a growing and exciting field with infinite opportunities and I always had an interest in it so I decided to pursue it as a career and learnt a few languages including Python and SQL.

HOW WAS THE TRAINING AT WILEY EDGE ACADEMY?

It was really helpful, especially as we were learning from people who had 30 years of experience working in the industry.

I learned about Linux and DevOps which I wouldn’t have known about without Wiley Edge. Linux is an operating system, like Windows or Apple, and it's used a lot within the banking industry. During the Wiley Edge training, I learned how to use it and to this day I still use the notes from that lecture.

The DevOps part of the training taught us how to automate parts of our job by creating code that automates repetitive tasks to save you time. DevOps is a mentality and the Wiley Edge training taught us that mindset.

Another area the Wiley Edge training helped me with was learning FIX Protocol, which is like a language that banks use to communicate with each other. Because Wiley Edge did a lecture on it, I had an idea of what it was before joining my company.

I definitely felt more prepared on the first day of my job because of the training.

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU HAVE FOR GRADS THAT ARE CONSIDERING JOINING WILEY EDGE?

On my LinkedIn, I’ve been posting about my journey with Wiley Edge and so people message me asking for help and advice. I always say go for it and have an open mind. All of Wiley Edge's jobs are full of potential so whatever one you go for it’ll have lots of growth opportunities.

I also tell them that they need to work on themselves. Do online courses, complete certifications and always work on your LinkedIn. There are loads of free courses on Udemy, and even the ones that cost you are usually only around $10 - the same price as a cup of coffee and a bagel! You also need to build on your soft skills so take leadership and communication courses as they’ll be useful for you in the professional industry.

It's about self-motivation and having discipline. You’ve got to want to learn especially if you’re like me and wanting to get into the industry without any experience or a related degree. I think Wiley Edge picked me because I'm always learning and developing my skill set.