Tom Wark's Personal Site

Archives for : August2013

First Post

My “adventures in coding” began in January of this year. I had finished a degree in Biology and Chemistry a few years ago and have been working in construction ever since. I tried finding a job in the science research field (not knowing whether I would even enjoy it) and had no opportunities at all. Since I worked as a renovator while in University, it seemed like the best way to earn a living while I figured out what path I wanted to take.

After some unfavourable experiences in the construction industry this past year I came to the decision that I needed to get out and find something I truly enjoyed. Until late high school I always thought I was going to take Computer Engineering in University so as I browsed programs at my local College this immediately caught my eye. I spoke to a few friends in the industry and they introduced me to a few different resources to learn how to write code. THAT was the trigger.

From that point on, in the depths of winter I began to constantly try to learn as much as possible about programming, software development and the technology in general. Every new thing that I researched led me to find something else I had never even heard of. I was spending almost every ounce of free time reading and learning. The first time I wrote some words into a text editor that actually produced a working (albeit very small) program I was hooked.

My favourite aspect of construction was always building something from nothing, or being able to see at the end of the day something that I had created. In programming I had found something that gave me that same satisfaction times ten! Being able to build a functional program from a bunch of text in an editor is something that immediately fascinated me. I knew I wanted more.

I was accepted into a College program for Computer Science and although very excited, I was also wary of going back to school for 3 years – quite a commitment. And then one day, on Shopify’s twitter, I saw HackerYou Summer Academy being announced. After reading every single word on the webpage and consulting with friends and family, I knew this course was perfect for me.

I couldn’t be more excited for this program to begin. Being taught by some of the top developers in the industry, with the most current and up to date information is an opportunity that cannot be beat. Spending 2 months to create my own application and begin to build a portfolio is exactly what I want. The fact that I’ll be doing it with a group that is equally as excited and motivated as I am just adds to the magnificence of this situation.

Summer Academy 2013 here I come, I can’t wait to see what our group can achieve!