Flatiron School recently launched our Women Take Tech scholarship in partnership with female-founded beauty subscription pioneers Birchbox. Together, we’re aiming to change the face of tech by awarding scholarships toward our Online Web Developer Program. Over the past month, we’ve been humbled by the incredible response – it was hard to choose just 25 women out of the hundreds of amazing applicants to receive these 50% scholarships to our online coding bootcamp. Today, we’re thrilled to announce that we’re expanding our partnership with Birchbox and offering scholarships to another 25 future female developers.
We’ve been inspired by our Women Take Tech scholars’ stories on their unique journeys to tech. Below, we’re excited to share why these women are learning to code – in their own words.
Jessica W.:
I love being creative, organized and keeping up with technology. My current favorite product is the Phillips Hue light system (there is nothing better than voice controlled color lights). My text editor of choice is Atom. I went to the NYC Empire Node conference by myself this year which was a very unique and inspiring experience. It was there that I watched a woman in her early 20s, not unlike myself, explain to a crowd of industry professionals how she made a “Frozen Bot” for her little sister using an Arduino despite her lack of experience with hardware. I admire how those in the tech industry are constantly reaching forward and pushing themselves to learn more and more.
Dalma B.:
The world of web development can be intimidating, but I also know firsthand how incredibly rewarding it is. The frustration of getting stuck on a seemingly small road block, which turns out to be astonishingly difficult to solve, is equally balanced by the immense reward of that one small breakthrough that pushes your project forward that inch that it needs (potentially hours of Google searches and trial-and-error later). It’s especially rewarding when you’re working on a project you dreamed up out of thin air, without knowing exactly where to start, but diving in anyway and figuring it out as you go. Each step towards realizing the final project, however big or small, is encouraging and exhilarating. I’ve spent hours upon hours at a time coding, only to continue to think about it when I’m away from my computer, and even dream about it at night. I know it takes a lot of dedication to become a successful developer, and I also know that I have the passion and the persistence that will allow me to become just that.
Hannah J.:
The proudest moments that I have during my 10 years of tax accounting were not providing clients with most efficient tax savings, but for setting up Microsoft Access to help a small family office to organize client information, and using lots of “if” formulas and Macros in Excel to help the team saving hundreds of man-hours. If you must ask why it takes ten years to discover one’s true passion, I have two words for you: “life happens.” Between marriage, kid, mortgage, car loan, and credit card loan, I jumped through hurdle after hurdle with my “practical” accounting degree. Now, I can finally take a leap of faith and start my new journey. Cheers to 2017!
Liliana A.:
I am currently working as an elementary school librarian in Austin, TX. This is my 11th year teaching. As a school librarian I have participated in Hour of Code with my students. When I see my students become enthusiastic about coding, I can envision my younger self reflected in them. I wish that I would have known in my youth that learning computer programming was something achievable for me. I am hoping to have a chance to change my future and learn more about this highly creative and innovative field. My dream job would be to work as a developer in Austin.
Inspired? Flatiron School and Birchbox are awarding Women Take Tech scholarships to 25 more aspiring female programmers in February. Get more information and apply here to start your coding journey below:
