I moved to Canada with my family in early 2018.

Before the move I was working as an accountant in Russia. I wasn’t happy with my work. Wanting a career change I got a job as a business analyst. It was there I had my first exposure to the world of tech, and I was hooked. I knew what I wanted to do. Wanting to go into web development and programming I tried to study tech my own, but without mentorship it was difficult.

We moved to Canada. As a newcomer I had no solid footing here. I felt lost. I had to start a completely new life in a new country. I knew it would not be easy and wanted to make the most of this time of change. I wanted to start working in tech but I didn't have enough experience or faith in myself.

At the same time as I received an offer for an analyst job, I found Hatchways. I was faced with a choice: to take a stable, familiar job - or to take a chance and jump into the world of tech.

I chose tech. I am happy I made that choice.

With Hatchways, I studied HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. They helped me make several projects and helped me get my first tech job at Synervoz -- a lean startup tech team in downtown Toronto. For three months I worked at this dynamic startup, working on interesting projects and developing my skills. I worked on QA and helped implement a new web feature for their social mobile app.

After that, I received a full-time job offer at Shop Bonsai as a junior React-native developer. I love working with React-native, and I love how my workplace uses new innovative technologies. It’s a challenge but an interesting one, and I know I am well on my way to developing professional skills and to becoming a great developer.

I am grateful to Hatchways for their support, help and mentorship. My life has changed for the better and I would not have been able to change it on my own.