How has it felt to be a new software engineer, but not quite so new to the workforce? It felt like a really great place to start my career because I'd be surrounded by people who were willing to help and mentor me, and that's held true. At the same time, they were also incredibly humble. Every single person that I met here was incredibly impressive in terms of what they'd accomplished as a software engineer. What made you decide to accept your role at Quip? I had no idea it would be such a great fit - it was a very pleasant surprise. Online! I didn't know much about Quip, but I saw the application and figured it wouldn't hurt to apply. How did you end up finding (and accepting) your role at Quip? The more I interviewed and the more I heard interviewers say they were impressed by what I'd done, the more I realized it was all in my own head. None of my interviewers were ever rude or dismissive, but I always had this voice in my head saying, "I don't think I'm actually qualified for this. I really felt like I had to prove myself. What was the interview experience like as a bootcamp grad - were you ever nervous about not having much experience? To learn more about why she's so glad she made the switch to software engineering, I chatted with Claire about the challenges she faced as a bootcamp grad and the ways the Quip team supported her during her transition. According to Claire, looking back on the transition now, "It was the best decision I've ever made." Not long afterwards, in 2018, she landed her job at Quip. Her family and friends helped her overcome the insecurities she felt ("will this work?" "am I good enough?") and with their support, she decided to go all in: she quit her job to attend coding bootcamp full-time. "I thought software engineering might be more technical and problem-solving focused," she says.īut even though she was already an engineer by trade, the idea of transitioning into software engineering scared her. That realization blossomed into something more when her job as a chemical engineer was no longer offering her the kinds of technical challenges she craved. I enjoyed doing it and was pleasantly surprised when I realized I wasn't horrible at it." "I never would've thought that I would do this when I graduated college," she explains, laughing.Įven when she took her first programming class (ironically, one sponsored by her employer at the time), she didn't expect it would lead to a career change: "It was just something fun. Now she's a full-time software engineer at Quip, Salesforce's productivity platform. Have you ever dreamed of pivoting into the world of software engineering? Claire Johnson, a self-proclaimed chemistry nerd who landed a chemical engineering job straight out of college, certainly hadn't… that is, until she took her first programming class online at Stanford. From Chemical Engineer to Coding Bootcamp Grad to Software Engineer
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