RecWorks Meet a Mentor programme: from Publishing to Programming….
As we continue on our journey to get to know our Meet a Mentor participants, I quizzed Andrei Bogomja to get his view on all things MAM.
Having worked for many years in the media in Latvia, Andrei moved to the UK to study Publishing, and graduated with a BA degree. However, in his spare time, Andrei’s favourite hobby has always been Computing. Due to this Andrei became engaged in the vibrant London IT community. When it came to graduation, and considering his future career options, Andrei made the decision to turn his hobby into his career and began a BSc in Computing at the University of London.
Andrei became aware of Meet a Mentor via an email circulating around the London Java Community and immediately applied; his primary motivation was to improve his software skills alongside his degree studies. Following Andrei’s application to join, the MAM team got straight on the case and matched him up with not one, but a selection, of great Mentors to give him the guidance he needed.
‘My first area for review with my Mentors was to explore specifically which programming skills, languages and practices I needed to develop in order to get a great job after graduation. Alongside learning Java, I was advised to learn JavaScript and CD/CI. In fact, the advice I received was so comprehensive it took me a whole year to work through it all! They’ve helped me so much by showing me the areas I need to develop.’
As well as steering Andrei in the right direction, his Mentors have helped him to avoid any major errors. In particular by providing him with guidance on Test-Driven Development and functional Java.
Finally, in the spirit of Meet a Mentor, and in the interests of spreading the love, I asked Andrei for his words of wisdom for anyone else looking to build a career in Java Development.
‘Start your own software project, large or small. Try to make it production-ready as much as you can. Learn best practices, join the London Java Community, and get the advice of a Mentor.’
In case you’ve not read our other Spotlight interviews, here are a few things we’d love you to know about Meet a Mentor:
– It’s free
– It really is for everyone. From aspiring Java/JVM software developers to CTO’s
– We’ll match you with a Mentor, or Mentors, based on what you need; and if we don’t have someone already signed up who is a great match, we’ll reach out across our network
– It’s really easy to get involved. You can sign up here. http://meetamentor.co.uk
