Spotlight - Chloe Jones

By Chloe Jones, Backend Developer

Background...

My journey into the tech industry started when I went to university in Manchester to complete a foundation year in engineering. I then studied for a bachelor’s degree in Material Science. I initially wanted to study for a PhD in Material Science which led me to complete a master’s in Material Science at Cambridge. Here, I was introduced to Python, which I used for all my data analysis. By using Python, I was able to save so much time and could rapidly produce visuals and graphs that wouldn’t have been possible with any other software.

After finishing my master’s and only really enjoying Python in my final year, the Material Science PhD no longer seemed appealing. So after university, I started to look for work. I secured a place on a Bootcamp where I learnt JavaScript and C#, and eventually landed a contractor role at Amazon.

But I’d say my tech career kick-started when I joined the BJSS Academy. Here, I was with like-minded individuals who were in the same boat as me and relatively new to software development.

Joining the BJSS Academy

The BJSS Academy was amazing. Everyone I met during the application process was friendly and made me feel at ease. I looked at other graduate programmes at the time, but BJSS stood out. I really did feel valued as a person, and the recruiters took great interest in my application. I simply didn’t have that experience with other organisations.

My favourite part of the BJSS Academy was the data week. I was surprised by this as I didn’t know much about data, but in hindsight, it was clear that it suited my science background. Data wasn’t something I’d considered before.

My expectations before joining the Academy were based on university and school. I was expecting a teacher-classroom environment where you listen and take notes. But the Academy was different. I was in an environment where you had to figure things out yourself and learn by doing. Of course, there were plenty of people about to help when needed.

Despite completing the Academy virtually, it was lovely to join several online socials with my peers, and I’ve made many new friends.

Where Next?

I’m now working as a back-end engineer on a project that I’m really enjoying. While I’m in no rush to try anything new right now, I eventually would like to join the BJSS Data Academy.

The original training course gave me a brief taster of data, which I’m keen to explore further and maybe opt for a data role in the future.

In conjunction with my day job, I have supported the Academy through tutoring and interviewing. It’s nice to speak with new students and learn more about them as a people rather than just their CVs.

Any Advice?

For anyone who’s about to join the BJSS Academy, try not to be nervous. Everyone is friendly and accommodating, and you’ll get the chance to make new friends. Ask lots of questions, get stuck in, try something new, and get yourself out there because the Academy is the perfect environment for you to do just that.

If you’d like to learn more about the BJSS Academy, please click here.