TechHired: Stay-at-Home Mom Learns to Code

This is our first article in our TechHired Series, which features individuals from TechHire communities. This series tells the stories of individuals who not only have been trained — they’ve also secured great jobs in tech.

How does one transition from stay-at-home mom to software developer? It’s not easy, but it’s possible — and Sally MacNicholas is living proof. After taking a few years off to focus on raising her two young children, Sally wanted to jump back into the workforce — as a software developer.

Nearly four in ten highly qualified women (37 percent) report that they have left work voluntarily at some point in their careers according to research by the Center for Work-Life Policy. Among women with children, that statistic jumps to 43 percent. Getting back into workforce after taking a number of years off to care for children is challenging, especially when employers raise questions about resume gaps.

Getting back into workforce after taking a number of years off to care for children is challenging, especially when employers raise questions about resume gaps.

For Sally, learning in-demand skills was essential to successfully re-entering the workforce. Sally knew that in order to access high-paying opportunities in tech, she would need to learn some new skills. In Sally’s case, this meant learning how to code.

Sally joined a coding bootcamp at Turing School of Software & Design in Denver, CO where she consistently performed in the top segment of her coding bootcamp cohort. Today, Sally works as an Assistant Instructor — making $37.15 per hour teaching others how to become software developers.

We interviewed Sally to learn about her journey into a tech career and hear her words of wisdom for others considering a similar path.

TechHired Quick Stats:

Name: Sally MacNicholas
Location: Colorado
Previous Job: Stay-at-home Mom
Current Job: Assistant Instructor & Software Developer
Current Employer: Turing School of Software & Design
Pay: $37.15 per hour
Proficient in: Ruby on Rails, Javascript, jQuery, MySQL, Postgresql, Sequel Pro, RSpec, Cucumber, Bootstrap, HAML, Stripe, ElasticSearch, Vanity, Responsys, HTML, and CSS.

TechHire: What were you doing prior to pursuing a career in tech?

After graduating from college, I worked with datasets and software tools to run business processes at a Denver firm. But with two young children at home, my priorities changed. I needed to take some time out of the workforce to focus on my family. While I was home with my kids, I began a small photography business but I was really missing the problem-solving aspects of my previous work.

I had very little experience with programming, but knew enough about it that I wanted to do it. My previous boss thought I would be good at it, so it felt like something worth pursuing. I liked the fact that as a software developer I could work in a role that provided enough flexibility to have a family and a career. Another thing that drew me to software development is the opportunity to work remotely.

I liked the fact that as a software developer I could work in a role that provided enough flexibility to have a family and a career.

TechHire: What were some barriers for you in pursuing a tech career? How did you overcome them?

Sally: The biggest barrier for me was figuring out how to get started. At the time I was thinking about getting trained as a programmer, my kids were around 18 months and 3 years old. Going back to school for a Computer Science degree wasn’t a feasible option as I didn’t have the time to spend another two years or more at a university. Not to mention finding a way to pay for that!

I just wanted to learn how to code as quickly as possible — but l wanted to learn enough to be able to land a job.

TechHire: What training programs/resources helped you get the skills you have today?

Sally: I met someone who worked at a bootcamp, and she told me more about how coding bootcamps work. When I heard that I could learn to code quickly, I was really excited. I started looking into 6-week, 12-week and 6–7 month training programs in Colorado and online.

I came across the Turing School of Software & Design, and their mission aligned with mine so I jumped at the opportunity to join their bootcamp. Seven months was a bit longer than other bootcamps I had looked into, but their program seemed like the perfect balance of learning enough valuable skills without having to be in school for another two years. I was lucky to have my mom move in with me to be able to watch my kids while I went to school. It made the transition from being a stay-at-home mom to full-­time student a lot easier.

TechHire: What do you love most about your tech job?

Sally: I love that I can build things from the ground up. I recently built an app that helped a non-profit automate their processes for a silent auction they were running. It’s empowering to know that I can use these skills not only for fun, but to help others too.

I have also built personalized software for myself. For example, I had a goal of taking 10,000 steps a day. I wanted a way to remind myself every hour how I was doing towards reaching that goal for the day. Most days I would get to 10 PM and be at only 4,000 steps. So I built an app that texted me every hour and told me how many more steps I needed to take within that hour to stay on track. It’s neat to think that I have the skills to design things that I need.

TechHire: What is your current salary/wage and what were you making before?

Sally: As a software developer, I’m now making around $37/hr. Before I took a break from the workforce, I was an IT Data Analyst making $20/hr. On that salary, I wasn’t really able to work AND put my children in daycare. At my current salary, I can afford to put my kids in private school and have enough money leftover to put towards savings. It’s comforting to know that I am saving enough to plan for rainy days or put my kids through college (or a bootcamp) in the future.

TechHire: What advice do you have for others considering a career in tech?

Sally: Find a community in your area or online where you can talk to others about their experiences. Going to events in your area from meetup.com or EventBrite are an easy way to meet people in tech and network. A person you talk to you at a meetup could eventually lead to a job offer down the road.

A person you talk to you at a meetup could eventually lead to a job offer down the road.

There are also great communities for women like TechLadies and Women Who Code. Getting involved with these communities allows you to meet others who were once in the same position as you.

Try to find some coding workshops or classes in your area and see if you like it. If you are able to go to a bootcamp, I highly recommend it because it’s easier to stay motivated with others helping you — and bootcamp programs often provide career support to help you land a job after you finish. If this is not an option, there are so many online resources now where you can learn to code on your own time.

This interview was conducted by Opportunity@Work’s Laura Faulkner and Rich Poplawski.