How Amon Advanced His Developer Career with Manzoor The Trainer

While Amon Mwesiga had started his IT career, he knew he would need to upskill in order to advance in tech. After watching Manzoor The Trainer’s YouTube tutorials, Amon felt instantly connected with the bootcamp’s teaching style. Learn about Amon’s experience in the live, online bootcamp, Manzoor The Trainer. Plus, how the 9-week intensive, web developer coding bootcamp gave Amon the skills he needed to take on more responsibility as a Software Developer at Infosys.

What were you up to before enrolling in the Manzoor the Trainer bootcamp?

I'm originally from Tanzania and that’s where I received a bachelor's degree in Information Technology (IT). When I moved to the United States, I worked as a PC Technician and then Technical Support. After working for a few years in IT and seeing what a developer does, my goal was to become a programmer. I took online courses and attended the Chicago bootcamp Coding Temple. After Coding Temple, I was able to land my first job as a developer, but I wanted to push myself to learn more new technologies. I wanted to learn the web applications that the tech industry is looking for, and that’s when I decided to enroll at the Manzoor the Trainer bootcamp.   

Did you research other bootcamps? What stood out about Manzoor the Trainer bootcamp?

When looking for an online bootcamp to help me upskill, I did plenty of research and I browsed sample videos of courses on YouTube. I learned a wide scope of fundamental programming while at Coding Temple, but I needed a bootcamp that focused on web technology and web applications. After watching coding tutorials that Manzoor the Trainer had posted on YouTube, I found it was easy for me to grasp the concepts. The way Manzoor explained the concepts made it almost effortless to understand. After that, I decided to enroll in the next cohort at Manzoor the Trainer. 

What was the application process like for Manzoor the Trainer? 

After submitting my interest form, they asked about my background. There was no coding challenge or prework. Manzoor the Trainer doesn’t gauge people's ability to code because the bootcamp begins with the basics of programming. Since I liked the bootcamp’s teaching style, I was okay with going through all of the basic programming again to refresh my memory even though my focus was what the curriculum covered later in the course.

What was a typical day like at the Manzoor the Trainer bootcamp?

The lectures are delivered in live, online sessions with GoToMeeting and hosted by the instructor Manzoor. Class lasts for two hours a day with a 15-minute break, Monday through Friday. It’s an international bootcamp, so the day started at 10pm in my timezone. If there were any interruptions during the week, we might have an extra session on Saturday. During the bootcamp, there was homework to be completed by the next day. Manzoor also allowed time in the day for us to ask our own questions, so he would explain anything we didn’t understand. 

What did you like most about Manzoor the Trainer’s teaching style? How did Manzoor the Trainer’s teaching style and curriculum compare to the other tech programs you had enrolled in?

Our instructor Manzoor would go into detail and take time to teach even more than what was in the syllabus. Lectures are also recorded and posted on the Manzoor the Trainer in case a bootcamp student needs to revisit something he covered in the lecture. Manzoor is the only instructor in the bootcamp.

The main difference between Manzoor the Trainer and the other tech programs I had graduated from is that Manzoor captured and expanded on the concepts. Manzoor made these concepts easier to understand. 

What was covered in the Manzoor the Trainer curriculum?

The curriculum covered C#, SQL, and databases. After that, we got into web applications, landing pages, ASP.net Core, JavaScript, JQuery, Ajax, and Angular. 

Were you able to interact with your cohort even though you were learning online?

Each cohort has a WhatsApp group. In that group, we were able to interact with each other and ask questions, including our instructor Manzoor. 

What kinds of projects did you work on when you were attending Manzoor The Trainer?

We had several capstone projects that included all of the technologies we learned over the course of the bootcamp. Manzoor gave us test scenarios to work on. There was also a blog where people in my cohort submitted their projects so their peers could review it. The blog allowed me to read everyone's submissions and submit my own. 

What is your advice for people who are considering Manzoor the Trainer?

All you need to enroll at Manzoor the Trainer is your dedication and commitment. If you need a refresher, Manzoor the Trainer will break everything down for you and will be there to help you along the way. 

Does Manzoor the Trainer's bootcamp provide career services?

There are groups for Manzoor the Trainer alumni and companies to interact. Manzoor also sends referrals to companies on behalf of alumnis.

How has your career changed since graduating from Manzoor the Trainer?

I was a Software Developer at Infosys, but since graduating from Manzoor the Trainer, I have new responsibilities on my team. Before Manzoor the Trainer, I was doing mostly maintenance to create a reliable product. Now, I will be working on a new project that’s a web application. Manzoor the Trainer gave me a better understanding of web applications, and that definitely helped me to achieve this new project. I will now be using C#, Virtual Network Computing (VNC), and the web APIs I learned from Manzoor the Trainer.

What is your job as a Software Developer at Infosys like?

My team consists of developers, business analysts, QA testers, and system analysts. We start each day with a meeting to update everyone on each other's progress. Afterwards, I work on my assignments. The day is split into two parts, communicating with the team and reaching out and working with different resources that I need to accomplish the job. 

What has been your biggest challenge in becoming the Software Developer that you are now?

There is a constant change in technology. It's hard to keep up! Every job expects you to know something new, something that you didn't have in your skillset already. That's a problem, because you have to continuously learn more in this profession.

Why do you think it's important to keep learning even after you’ve gotten a job as a developer or software engineer?

No matter what tech career you go with, you have to keep learning new things. That's what this career is about! There are so many different positions and each one requires a new skillset. When you spend most of your days working in just one area, you don't have time to keep up with technologies elsewhere. That’s the reason I decided to enroll at Manzoor the Trainer because I knew I needed to hone my skills. Also once you have a solid foundation, learning new languages and applications traces back to what you already know. You don’t have to start from the beginning again.

Would you recommend this path to other students – changing careers into tech?

I really do! There are so many positions and fields to choose from in tech, including machine learning, artificial intelligence, and data science. Everything is becoming autonomous and the technology is creating even more of a demand for developers and engineers. Anyone who is interested in technology should get involved!

Find out more and read Manzoor the Trainer on Course Report. This article was produced by the Course Report team in partnership with Manzoor the Trainer.