There will be 1.4M open computer science jobs by 2020, yet less than 3% are projected to be filled by women. At Revature we believe in leading the way and increasing the number of women in technology. Because of this, we extended our strategic partnership with the City University of New York (CUNY) to include Women in Technology and Entrepreneurship in New York (WiTNY) on several initiatives designed to increase the number of women working in technology.
A result of this partnership is Revature’s first industry-aligned coding program exclusively for women. Eight women with various backgrounds came together in September 2017 to begin their journey to becoming highly-skilled Java developers.
Background
Carolyn Rehm graduated with a degree in physics from Tulane University in New Orleans in May 2017. While there she had taken some introductory computer sciences courses, where her interest in coding ignited, however she was not able to integrate more classes into her already full schedule.
Why Revature
After graduating Carolyn did not see herself going into academia or strictly research, which a career in physics would have led her to. While job searching she encountered the challenges that many new graduates face.
“It’s the typical catch 22 of needing industry experience before you can get any industry experience. That makes things pretty difficult, especially if you weren’t exposed in undergrad. I personally studied physics so I wasn’t doing internships with companies that I would have liked to apply to and work for.”
“For me it was the difficulty of branching across to a different industry. I think it’s universal in that if you don’t have an internship during college and gain the exposure before even graduating it’s a lot harder to actually secure employment.”
Revature was the opportunity she was looking for in order to pursue a career in technology.
“I thought it would be great to work with Revature and to build onto what I already knew. It would help me develop a strong foundation of marketable skills.”
Originally from New Jersey, Carolyn was excited to head to New York City and the CUNY campuses, where the training is located. She was also looking forward to challenging herself and being pushed to succeed.
“I was ready to dive in. I knew success was attainable and that I could handle anything thrown at me.”
Revature Results
Carolyn far exceeded expectations. A standout from week one of training, Carolyn quickly grasped the technologies being taught. She was also a natural leader, assisting those around her.
She was selected as the Most Valuable Programmer (MVP) of her group based on her aptitude, abilities, dedication, and leadership. As a testament to her success, Carolyn was hired to the internal Revature team.
“I’m really excited to join the Revature team! I was flattered to even have been considered for a position on the training team, as everyone I’ve met on it seems so great and incredibly competent. The position seems so dynamic and full of challenges, and I’m looking forward to diving in.”
Advice to New Associates
Carolyn believes in Revature and that, with the right mindset, others can succeed as well.
“I would recommend Revature, but to the right person. You definitely have to be someone who is really ready and willing to learn and to dive in. I’ve had a lot of fun creating fully functional applications and I think if anyone wants that experience this is a good opportunity for that.”
Closing the Technology Gender Gap
Additionally, Carolyn is proud to be contributing to helping women advance in technology.
“It’s really nice to spend time with such capable women who have similar goals. Having studied physics, this isn’t the first time I’ve been in a context where it’s predominantly male so I never felt limited by that and obviously these women don’t either. I am hopeful that this trend continues and that the industry is ready for a change.”