I know it is cliché, but a change is as good as a rest and I was excited about my career break giving me the opportunity to diversify and do something new.

But …. before I continue there’s something that I must address. A career break should involve a break, right? Travelling around the world, seeing new places, swimming in clear oceans and climbing snowy mountains? Well … yes, it should, and while all of that does appeal to me, it will have to wait a little longer. The career break that took my fancy was one that involved studying new languages and a skill set that was shaping our future … and I was eager to get started.

In September 2016 the familiar position I held in the classroom had changed and I now found myself on the other side of the teacher’s desk, roles had been reversed and the teacher was once again the student. Seated in a lecture theatre in the new Computer Science Building of Queen’s University, ready to embark upon an MSc one-year conversion course in software development was a daunting prospect, to say the least, but I was looking forward to my career break from primary school teaching.

As a teacher, I was a massive advocator of continuous learning, I believed standing still in terms of professional development was essentially slowly moving backwards, and in the field of tech, it was moving backwards at a breakneck pace. Completing a master’s conversion course in software development during my career break offered me a chance to jump into this new discipline with no strings attached and immerse myself in learning.

From the get-go, I loved it, I felt so privileged having the chance to study a degree course that was at the forefront of changing the way we interact with the world. Almost immediately I became aware of how teaching and learning experience had evolved since I last was a student at teacher training college. The impact of technology had undoubtedly a stronger grip than before and I was fascinated by how accessible the course content was. Support documentation was readily available in many interactive forms, I for one engaged best with YouTube tutorials provided by the course lecturer and the many other tech gurus sharing their material online.

Learning to code is so different from learning other the content on other degree courses. It is a feedback-driven process … Your code executes the way you anticipate or it doesn’t, the response is instantaneous, giving you success or the opportunity to fix it accordingly. This immediate feedback gave me a ‘kick’, I got a thrill from writing something that successfully solved a problem or altering it, so I got the desired result. I enjoyed the moment of personal reflection on the work that I had just completed.

The game had also changed in terms of networking with my peers, social media platforms delivered a medium to discuss the recent lecture, share tips for exams and offer insights into useful resources. None of this was available during my previous degree and it certainly added to the high-quality teaching and learning experience.

Of course, it wasn’t always a bed of roses, the year did have highs and lows but throughout I was always delighted to have had the chance to take the course. The modules delivered covered all aspects of software development, with a double module emphasis on Java programming. Focus and priority were given to delivering the principles of Object Oriented Design, which I really enjoyed, and the benefits of which were to be discovered during the various projects undertaken throughout the year. Studying databases for the first time was a challenge, especially as my previous degree was unrelated, but I applied myself well, and in the end, I had a great appreciation for the value and purpose of the module.

Yet still, I can hear you ponder… Why would I want to change from the long, fully paid, glorious summer holidays of the teaching profession, the security of a government job and a generous pension? The answer ironically relates back to education. I love learning, I like the fast pace of new technology and how it was providing solutions for everyday problems. I didn’t want to be an observer, I wanted to be a player. Doing a full-time masters conversion course was a great way to place me front-and-centre. Have I closed the door on education? Most definitely not. I fully intend to share what I have learned, to give others an opportunity to step into the world of software.

How did it all go? Good news, the exams were a success and I was awarded the master’s degree. I then took up an opportunity to work in the Fintech industry, starting as a three-month intern with Edinburgh company Consalis. Here I was provided with a unique opportunity to become involved in the development of a bespoke asset management application for fund managers. In a small three-person development team, I worked under the tutelage of the project’s architect, who had a vast amount of knowledge in software development and talent in sharing the expertise he had acquired during his career. I was introduced to the commercial side of software development, taught to use the Angular 4 framework and a new language in JavaScript, exposed to the importance of version control and actively involved in conducting code reviews.

After completing my internship, the next obvious step for me was to secure full-time permanent employment. I had been given an insight into the Fintech aspect of software development and I was keen to delve in deeper. I also wanted to start my software career with a company that was established on a global scale and who had a reputation for producing robust products while supporting their employees in the process. Living in relative proximity to Dublin and Belfast ensured that I had plenty of options to choose from. So, I set about preparing myself for the interview process by reviewing the design patterns and principles I had learned and experimented with the previous year and kept abreast of the latest trends in tech. I enhanced my Github profile, giving potential employers a chance to see what I had been involved in before and created a Wordpress site to showcase my online profile.

All of this was useful for the interviews that I participated in. The interview process varied slightly from company to company … But generally, it involved a chat with the HR personnel, a telephone technical interview, an onsite technical interview and a form of soft skills questioning.

The company I decided to work with was Citi Bank, for all the reasons mentioned above. As I near one full month of employment with Citi I am delighted with the decision I took. The team I am working with, Rates eTrading, are friendly and supportive which has made my introduction to the company a seamless process.

In the future … I am confident that my time with Citi Bank will develop me further as a software engineer through the exposure to new technologies and the sharpening of my skills. I will take part in hackathons and become an active member of tech social meetups, contributing to my local learning community in whatever city I am living in.

Do I have advice for anyone else considering a move into the world of tech? Yes, of course, be humble and be hungry. Have the wit to realise that every day is a school day, you can learn from anyone, no matter what their rank and station, but also be hungry for knowledge. The tech industry is dynamic, the latest technology trends can have a short lifespan, so a desire for continuous learning is important, however starting off with an established object-oriented language like Java, C# JavaScript or Python, to begin with, would be useful.

Given the pace with which the tech industry moves — be it teaching tech or learning tech, I’ve realised I’ll never be too far from a classroom of sorts.