It's tiring.
At my ripe 31 years, I need 8 - 9 hours to thrive. But, these days? I'm doing 5 - 7 hours to survive. And boy, am I tired.
Sure, 21 year-old me could pull all-nighters any day of the week. But, 31 year-old me? Aw hell to the nah.
As such, going to school and working full-time means constantly guzzling caffeine and sneaking in naps whenever I can. There's no such thing as beauty sleep anymore - I am the Walking Dead.
It's tough.
I don't care if you've been coding since you were a fetus - computer science is hard. Want to know why I'm losing sleep? Because I only have one week at a time to learn key concepts from two sets of classes.
Right now, Discrete Mathematics is kicking my ass. And I used to be good at math! Between sequences, set theory, and proofs/disproofs, it's taking all of my brain power to stay afloat.
It's nerve-wracking.
Listen, $30K is a lot of money. And, as someone who already went into debt for Degree 1.0, I can't help but wonder, What if I don't get a job?
Sure, software engineering is hot right now. But, will it last forever? And if software engineering is such a hot job market, why are so many people unable to land their first gig?
And, as a black woman, can I convince a tech company to give me a chance?
But, on the other hand...
Being a college student is inspiring.
Thanks to the program, I've joined a community of students that span a ton of different backgrounds and ages. We're all career switchers, so it's really cool when someone announces a new job or internship.
Right now, I'm in love with the #rejections thread in our community slack. The idea behind it is this: you're going to face a ton of rejections before you land your perfect gig. So, instead of mourning the process, why not celebrate it?
And that's what we do!
When someone posts a rejection, we give them a virtual high-five. The spirit of #rejections has inspired me to be more bold in my aspirations.
Each rejection means I'm one step closer to an awesome opportunity.
Top comments (2)
Thanks, Mariah!!!
WE CAME TO SLAY