In the tech industry, the only constant is change. Which is totally exciting! It means you are in charge of your tech career destiny, and you can use your previous experience either in school or in other industries to contribute to the innovation that is inherent in tech jobs. Let’s take a look at how you can weigh the pros of turning to a career in tech, and the practical steps to take to set your tech career on fire 🔥 (in the best sense)!
Why make the leap to tech?
The technology industry is vast and exciting meaning there is a place for anyone who wants to join the party. Whether you are interested in design, coding, artificial intelligence, marketing, sales, or anything in between, you can be sure there is a role that you will be the perfect fit for. Let’s look at a few aspects of a career in tech that make it such an appealing move to make as you plan your professional trajectory…
Fulfilling
A career in tech will be tremendously fulfilling. Think about your daily life and how much technology plays a role in pretty much everything you do. By focusing on a career in tech, you will be able to make a meaningful difference in the daily life of millions of people who depend on modern technology. It may seem like a big responsibility, but think about the enormity of the change you could influence. After all, as Winston Churchill and Spiderman made clear, “with great power comes great responsibility.” Your contribution to the technology sector will give you great personal satisfaction and provide you with a sense of pride.
Challenging
Nobody wants a boring job. When you decide to join the technology industry, you will never be bored. A big part of working in tech is constantly training and upskilling to keep up to date with the latest trends, softwares, codes, and more. Plus you’ll need to be able to maintain communication with your colleagues either remote or in person while making the time to devote to invest in your continued improvement. The challenge is definitely worth it! You’ll always be stimulated and learning, which means you will always be growing.
Impactful
We’ve already mentioned, but a career in tech is going to be incredibly impactful. The world is changing faster every day. Look at the billionaires racing to get to space while at the same time we’re dealing with the effects of climate change and worldwide pandemics. Technology is driving the solutions to today’s problems, and your contribution is needed! Your ideas and experience will be the force that allows the tech sector to combat the challenges facing the world today. The industry is spread across the globe, and allows for the voices of millions to be heard and contribute to solving problems creatively.
In-demand
Your tech skills are in high demand. Did you know that the pandemic has forced businesses to drastically rethink how they work? In most cases, this has triggered digital transformation initiatives. In fact, even as the pandemic eases up a bit (fingers crossed), businesses are continuing with the implementation of these plans. A report from Gartner shows that 58% of IT leaders reported either an increase or a plan to increase emerging technology investments in 2021, compared with 29% in 2020. The market needs tech workers now more than ever, so it’s a great time to invest in your tech skills.
Benefits of a Tech Bootcamp
So now you're convinced that you want to start your tech career adventure (or maybe you were already set on it), and now you're wondering how a tech bootcamp can help you get there...
Constant learning
Working in the technology industry, no matter what path you take, means you will be constantly learning. The nature of the industry is innovative, so staying ahead of industry trends is critical to your professional development. Learning new coding languages or UX best practices will help you stay relevant, and at the same time, you’ll be strengthening your analytical skills and your memory. Life long learning is the key to personal fulfillment and satisfaction, and a career in tech will certainly contribute. And the best part is, you don’t have to go back to school to do it.
Forget going back to school
It’s expensive. It’s time consuming. And it’s definitely not necessary. Four-year traditional universities are losing their credibility, and their necessity. Vocational training is far more lucrative now, and it’s obvious in the post-COVID world that there is not the same need there was before for massive campuses, dorms, and huge expenses that are passed on to students. While we know that in-person learning is super important, we believe it can be done on a much leaner scale. Plus, it doesn’t have to take so long! There are so many ways you can learn within the tech industry without shelling out thousands of dollars and wasting four years of your life to get a traditional degree. The tech industry is great because titles don’t necessarily matter. What is important is that you have the skills to do the work, and you have a strong network to help you connect with the right people.
Learning is accessible digitally
A lot of the learning you’ll be doing in tech is, of course, online. Going to in-person events will be what helps you build and expand your personal network, but the work itself will be mostly digital. That frees you up time and location-wise. You can be a digital nomad while you continue to improve your skills in whatever tech field you decide to pursue. Digital learning is great because you really can upskill from anywhere in the world.
Remote tech bootcamps offer the same high quality education, community atmosphere, and end-to-end career support that campus bootcamps do.
Choose your own adventure
When you’re on the verge of beginning a career in tech, there are a lot of things to think about! The first being, what kind of tech do you want to get into? Web Development, UX/UI Design, Data Analytics, and Cybersecurity are all exciting paths you can choose to go down.
Immersive web development would entail building game-changing apps with HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and React (and maybe even inventing your own programming language!). You’ll be on the cutting edge of the next must-have applications that make our interconnected lives easier.
User experience (UX) and user interface (UI) design will have you learning how to make the apps that programmers build practically usable for the end-user. When you are trained in user experience, research, Figma, design thinking, and user interface you’ll be an integral part of any company's workforce.
Then there’s data analytics! Becoming an expert in data will make you an invaluable part of any team. The ability to capture data is a small part of the puzzle. Once you have all this data, what do you do with it? How will you use it, and for what purpose? Learn Python, SQL, Tableau, and statistics to become a Data Analyst and ultimately the superhero of the analytics team. Making sense of all that data is critical for any company’s bottom line.
Finally, cybersecurity is a very important career path you may choose to take. White hat hackers are so important for major corporations and governments alike. As a cybersecurity tech worker, you’ll need to act like a virtual ninja, constantly staying steps ahead of cybercriminals that want to infiltrate networks and steal data.
Join an exciting and engaging network of peers
Of course, when you get into the tech sector, you’re joining a lot of other really smart, cool people. People who are interested in continuous improvement, and changing the world for the better. You’re going to get to work with some incredibly bright minds, and have fun while you do it! Remember, these are the people who introduced ping-pong in the office and casual every day. You’ll be joining a very chill cohort.
Get lasting support as you grow in your career
When you join a tech bootcamp and take the leap to invest in your career, you also get access to Ironhack’s career services. The program is a standalone course in the student portal, combined with individual support from our coaches. It is divided into three different stages to be completed in different moments: Before, during, and after the course.
Behind our success is a strong network of hiring partners, a dedicated outcomes team, and a deep knowledge of the tech job market and how to navigate it.
Take advantage of the network effect
The network effect says that the more people work together towards a common goal, the more its value grows. That is why the more events you participate in and people you connect with, the higher your value, and the stronger your career development. When you make the decision to invest in your tech education, you’re also affecting your career success exponentially. The more people you have in your network, and the more connections you make, you’ll see that you’ll be getting top level work that you determine on your terms, no matter which career path you decide to take. The internet is a perfect example of the network effect! When there were just a few users, it had little value. Now we need it for nearly everything! When you invest in your tech career, you’re building the internet, and sharing it with others.
Gain access to elite industry career experts
Part of getting your foot in the door is not necessarily what you know, but who you know. When you join an Ironhack Bootcamp, you’re going to get to know some of the biggest names in technology startups and developments. Think Accenture, Google, Visa and even Twitter. You’ll be rubbing elbows with top talent who want to mentor and train the next generation of technology leaders. A recommendation on LinkedIn from a tech insider can be a great boost as you engage in your career development.
Connect with your local tech industry leaders
When you join a bootcamp, you’ll also get the chance to connect with local technology industry leaders. While so many tech jobs are online and remote, that isn’t always the case, especially depending on the industry you are in. If you’re interested in working for financial institutions or governments, getting familiar with the local crowd will be imperative for security reasons. Also, it’s just more fun to meet up in person every once in awhile!
Tech bootcamps: risk vs. reward
We know investing in your career by joining a bootcamp is super important to you. We also know it can be a little intimidating. How much should you spend? And will you really get a job? Investing in a bootcamp is just that – an investment. You’re making a commitment to yourself to embark on a career journey that will be engaging and rewarding, throughout your whole life!
Let’s do a little math… The yearly salary of a data scientist can be as high as $150,000, making it the highest paying job role of 2022. And you can do it remotely! With the help of our career services, you’ll have paid back your bootcamp in no time, and be well on your way to saving the world through technology. We know it may be a tough choice, but we also know that YOU know the right decision. Develop your tech skills by joining a Tech Bootcamp today!
