Learner Testimonial — Skills Bootcamps in Data Analysis: Karishma

Our former learner, Karishma Charlwood, returned to work after 13 years by taking Skills Bootcamps with Firebrand and the FDM Returners programme. This is her story.

Karishma worked as a Software Developer for 10 years. After the birth of her first child, her priorities shifted and she took a break from work. Her family grew to three children and she went on hiatus to care for them.

Once all children reached school age, Karishma wanted to return to IT, looking for flexible employment to accommodate her family life. She trained as a Teaching Assistant and volunteered in local schools. However, neither of these activities made the best use of her skills, and as time went on she began to feel out of touch with industry developments.

Luckily, she registered for training updates with various companies. In early 2022, the Department for Education (DfE) announced funding for professionals to retrain in IT, so Karishma enrolled in the Firebrand Skills Bootcamp in Data Technician. This three-month intensive programme gave her the opportunity to receive two industry-recognised certifications, the Microsoft Azure Fundamentals and Microsoft Azure Data Fundamentals, which brought her up to speed with the profession.

While Karishma was undergoing this training, the FDM Group approached her with an offer to join their first-ever Tech Returners programme.

FDM Group is an international recruitment company headquartered in London, active throughout Europe, North America, and Australasia. Their Returners programme supports career leavers returning to work after an extended break.

Karishma joined FDM Tech Returners Programme specialising in Java in May 2022 as part of their first all-female cohort. Interestingly, around the same time, at Firebrand, we were collaborating with FDM Returners to deliver Python training for ex-military personnel.

Karishma enjoyed collaborating with like-minded people and developing a solid foundation in Core Java, UNIX, and Angular.

“I feel equipped with all the right tools I need to have a great start to a future career in any software development platform I may come across in my role.”

Karishma is currently working as a Software Developer with a global financial services company. An excellent FDM and Firebrand success story!

What is Firebrand?

For the past 13 years in a row, we’ve been named one of the Top 20 IT Training Companies in the World.

We specialise in accelerated courses, Apprenticeships, and training solutions that get you certified and into IT at twice the speed.

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