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When Temitope trudged daily along the dusty road to school in the hilly city of Akure, his innocent mind was often filled with two thoughts – where his next fees would come from? What does the future hold. “My upbringing was marked with financial challenges, which led me to live with different relatives. I struggled to graduate from the Federal University of Technology, Akure with a degree in industrial chemistry. After completing my NYSC in February 2021, I provided home lessons for secondary school students. I did this till December 2021.”
Temitope began to explore his growing interest in tech using social media accounts and microblog sites to flex his tiny muscles. The more he delved in, he realized how he could acquire valuable skills that could change his life. He was barely holding up with his after-school tutorials. Could tech skills help him land a dream job? “The advertisement for ALX on social media caught my attention, and I decided to take a chance.”
“The realization that skills may be as valuable as certificates and the desire to explore a technical path motivated me to enter the tech industry. I recognized an opportunity in software engineering, a field I was exposed to through ALX training.”
Temitope believes change is the only permanent phenomenon. As he embraced the new challenge of learning tech, he had to adopt a willing and dogged mentality to finish. “In the latter part of 2021, my journey with ALX commenced when I initially applied for the Software Engineering course. However, at that time, the prospect of a year-long commitment seemed daunting, and I set it aside, assuming it wasn’t feasible within my schedule. But in October 2022, a moment of clarity and personal growth prompted me to revisit the opportunity. I enrolled in the SE course, dedicating my full focus, including leaving my previous job, to this transformative experience.
Temitope showed resilience, as he delved into various technical areas, including C language, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, TypeScript, Git, Python, Flask, APIs, unit test, integration testing, SQL, MongoDB, Redis, web servers (Nginx and Apache), load balancers, and many more. “In addition to technical skills, I’ve honed soft skills such as teamwork, good and effective communication, teaching, critical thinking, and time management. Thanks to ALX,” he said.
His hard work paid off after graduating from the ALX programme as he secured a well-paying job as systems support engineer with a reputable organisation. “Even though my primary focus at work is on database management and fraud detection, I engage in discussions and collaborate seamlessly with frontend, backend, and DevOps engineers, to the extent that they often wonder about the source of my proficiency. This programme has, in no small way, positively impacted my success at work. This is because many of the tools I employ in my daily work had been initially introduced to me during my ALX SE journey, significantly streamlining my responsibilities and enhancing my effectiveness.” Temitope’s success at work demonstrates the practicality of the ALX programme.
Although Temitope now lives a better life, his best advice is that “Money, in itself, is a commodity, and high-valued skills are one of the currencies that can acquire it. Learn a high-valued skill”.
He is strongly inspired by Julien Barbier, the founder of Holberton School for his contributions to using technology to enhance tech education. He now aspires to become an expert full-stack software engineer and leverage technology to address some of Africa’s challenges. Remotely, he intends to impact his community by building an anti-fraud tool to detect fraudulent transactions and ensure security in the financial sector.
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Salami is a tech-driven global marketing and communications leader with extensive experience in international development, telecommunications, FMCG and financial institutions
