Ivan Quartey

“I was born and raised in London (Westminster). I graduated from the University of Southampton with a bachelor’s degree in maths. Thereafter I applied for roles within IT in the Educational sector, I even joined an online software testing course from another provider hoping to get into an entry level 1 in Software Development just to up-skill, but it didn’t work out that way and I still struggled to find employment. I had no choice but to apply for universal credit, from there I then found out about the Level 2 Software Development course at WAES Pimlico and progressed onto Level 3 Certificate in Software Development.  

My dream job is to become a Video Game Developer, so this course was just right for me to build on my current knowledge to achieve my future career goals. Despite having a mathematical degree, I still needed specific software skills. 

I enjoyed collaboration with the other learners on the course, we all helped each other and had some interesting conversations to do with the Tech industry. I also loved learning about Hyphen. My tutor was great at giving us tips and informing us about the industry. He was very friendly and approachable and always available outside of class hours if I ever needed a question answered.  

Having completed this course I now feel more confident to answer questions within my industry, using technical language. One of my challenges/flaws was always overthinking about the quality of my CV but after meeting the Digital Careers Coach, he really reassured me that my CV was good enough to land me job. He helped me tweak my CV and with practice interviews. In that time, I also volunteered as IT support, monitoring the health of computers and laptops plus other administrative tasks, for a Latin American disability project to boost my skills, offered to me by another careers service. 

I am currently a trainee software developer at Digital Futures. This is a 12-week full-time placement where Digital Futures will connect me with other companies such as Sky/cognizant, in the hopes to find me a permanent contract role with them. I had to go through various tests to be here, it’s been challenging but I’m on the right path.”