Digital Sector Routeway - Kaisa
CASE STUDY
Kaisa was born in 1993 and after leaving school in Estonia, decided to move to Sheffield for university. She managed to get an undergraduate degree in Zoology and a master’s degree in International Development, but regardless of these qualifications and countless hours of volunteering, struggled to find a job or a career path she’d be happy with.
She was working as a bartender for a while before finding a temporary role as a business support officer. Working with data in that role made her realise that she would like to have a career as a software developer so she started learning it at home. When her job came to an end, she had an opportunity to undertake the Sheffield City Council’s Sector Routeway Web development bootcamp. The scheme is funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) and operates in partnership with the DWP to offer claimants a short ‘bootcamp’ approach to retraining. The training is followed by 2 week’s work experience and ultimately supported into employment.
Kaisa started the programme in July 2021, completed all 12 weeks of learning, and now works for a small start-up called Synap as a Junior Software Developer.
Challenges Overcome
Kaisa was feeling discouraged about her long-term career prospects, and was feeling unsure whether to retrain as her previous qualifications didn’t land her any suitable jobs. She knew she wanted a career in software development but wasn’t sure how she could compete with people who had studied computer science in university and lacked a lot of confidence due to that. The bootcamp was one of the most challenging and time-consuming things she’s ever done which she had to complete while also struggling with her health. In the end, all the hard work was worth it as the bootcamp offered such an in-depth knowledge of the industry that she already had a job lined up before the bootcamp was over.
Sheffield City Council operates Sector Routeways short bootcamps across a variety of industry areas for adults looking to retrain: Construction, Engineering, Manufacturing, Digital, Care and Telecom Fibre. To find out more about the Sector Routeways scheme please email: sectorrouteways@sheffield.gov.uk
Kaisa was born in 1993 and after leaving school in Estonia, decided to move to Sheffield for university. She managed to get an undergraduate degree in Zoology and a master’s degree in International Development, but regardless of these qualifications and countless hours of volunteering, struggled to find a job or a career path she’d be happy with.
She was working as a bartender for a while before finding a temporary role as a business support officer. Working with data in that role made her realise that she would like to have a career as a software developer so she started learning it at home. When her job came to an end, she had an opportunity to undertake the Sheffield City Council’s Sector Routeway Web development bootcamp. The scheme is funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) and operates in partnership with the DWP to offer claimants a short ‘bootcamp’ approach to retraining. The training is followed by 2 week’s work experience and ultimately supported into employment.
Kaisa started the programme in July 2021, completed all 12 weeks of learning, and now works for a small start-up called Synap as a Junior Software Developer.
Challenges Overcome
Kaisa was feeling discouraged about her long-term career prospects, and was feeling unsure whether to retrain as her previous qualifications didn’t land her any suitable jobs. She knew she wanted a career in software development but wasn’t sure how she could compete with people who had studied computer science in university and lacked a lot of confidence due to that. The bootcamp was one of the most challenging and time-consuming things she’s ever done which she had to complete while also struggling with her health. In the end, all the hard work was worth it as the bootcamp offered such an in-depth knowledge of the industry that she already had a job lined up before the bootcamp was over.
Sheffield City Council operates Sector Routeways short bootcamps across a variety of industry areas for adults looking to retrain: Construction, Engineering, Manufacturing, Digital, Care and Telecom Fibre. To find out more about the Sector Routeways scheme please email: sectorrouteways@sheffield.gov.uk