Our lives are full of systems that ensures our daily lives runs as usual. It is thanks to various interconnected systems, i.e., integrations, that a visit in the grocery store goes without problems. Payment traffic is smooth both in stores and web shops, and the stock situation corresponds to reality. Thanks to integrations, systems talk to each other – data moves, information passes, and things roll.

All this seamless intersystem dialogue is ensured by the integration developer – a coder specializing in system interfaces and their integration, whose expertise is now in strong demand in the IT industry.

Academy's alumni Kati and Henna have undergone the intensive training program, and they have both been employed by Solita after the program. Now they tell how a new direction in their career was found and they open up about their study time and explain what the training includes and requires.

Diversity in the IT industry was one reason to a career change

Kati, who previously worked on organizing events and coordinating projects, experienced that her current tasks was no longer matching her own career dreams. She began longing for more specialized work and could not stop thinking about a job where she was able to get deeper into things.

I felt lost in my career and didn’t knew what I wanted to do next. I knew that the work situation in the IT industry was beneficial, and the diversity of the industry attracted me to do a change of career field” Kati explains.

Henna, who studied computer science, was already familiar with the IT industry, even though her previous jobs had been a little off IT related work.

I worked as a technical agent in online payment services. My life situation was such that I was either thinking about completing my studies so that I could move from customer service to the software industry properly, or a new job in general.

When Henna was exponed for an Academy announcement of intensive training focused on cloud development, the choice between whether to study or start a new job was unexpectedly resolved from both perspectives.

All in one virtual classroom

Being a part of an Academy program is intense. There will be a lot of new learnings and the pace of studying is fast – on the other hand, you can also quickly notice the development of your own competencies, as the learning curve is steep.

It has occurred to me that I was sometimes stucked in a certain thing and that it seemed difficult to learn at the time. But after a few weeks I noticed that learning new things was easy and felt natural. I was amazed how it before had seemed so difficult to learn" Kati laughs.

For Henna, the fast pace of study fit very well. The learning progression during the program was clear and it was split into modules, where the emphasis was strongly on practical tasks. At the end of each module, the competence of the topic was tested by an exam, which was a practical task within the topic.

"Although the training was conducted online, it quickly became a common way of working together as a group. We used a remote meeting room diligently, where we worked at our own pace, with our cameras on. When questions appeared during the training, you just turned on your microphone, which allowed both students or the teacher to help and support with the questions" Henna says.

Studying was sometimes tough, but alumni agree that the main asset of education is peer to peer support from other students. According to Henna, the program also included broader group projects, where you could sometimes use a little humor.

No days are the same

Integrations have become more complex, which is why the need for integration developers has grown rapidly in the IT industry. In addition to code, the integration developer's working day includes combining ready-made integration solutions, a lot of problem solving and business development. With the work, you can get to know different IT systems. Interaction and cooperation with both the team and customer companies is close.

Kati and Henna both underwent a cloud developer program at AW Academy and are now working with cloud services. Kati, who changed career field last year explains that she started her new career working with smaller maintenance tasks, but that she was soon moved on to project tasks. Today, Kati works on two different projects to take care of customers' cloud computing environments.

What I like most about my work is that no day is the same. My duties are versatile, and I enjoy the feeling of success. The best part is when I solve a problem that has been there for a longer time.

For the upcoming summer program at AW Academy, the focus will not only be on the cloud, but more broadly on integration development. The work therefore has the same elements as Kati’s and Henna’s, but it also involves a lot of working with other systems and technologies in addition to the cloud.

Learn from experienced people

Henna's time at Solita has not lasted many weeks yet, but the people-close and supportive work culture has already been felt.

Solita has been amazing, and all my positive expectations have already been exceeded! I've truly felt welcome. The best thing is that people are always ready to help.

Henna does not find it impossible to one day complete her studies in computer science. However, it is not the right time for her, as she now enjoys her new and wonderful career that she has started at Solita.

In the IT industry learning new things is continuous, and Solita's future prospects seem bright" Henna says.

Kati also sees a huge number of opportunities and potential career options in the IT industry. Just over a year in the IT industry, and Kati have already learned many new practices in the field and expanded her skills she gained during the program.

I feel the learnings have enabled me to start a new job and the development has been rapid even after the program. Solita has an excellent opportunity in developing new talents by learning from more experienced people.