What motivated you to sign up?

I was looking for a better way to learn coding. I had done a several online tutorials and courses on my own but wanted something a bit more structured. I went to a meetup and Matt Mawhinney took a few minutes to introduce us to LaunchCode. When I heard Matt talking about LaunchCode, I knew this was exactly what I was looking for. I signed up, and soon after that they announced that they were going to have CS50xMiami.

How did the reality of class differ from your expectations?

I did not expect the class to take up so much of my time. At first it sounded like it would be just a couple of days a week. But with the workload that we had, it was pretty much an every day class. It was much more challenging than I expected.

Tell us about a highlight from class.

We had an event where the professor from Harvard, David Malan, came down and was very accessible to all of us. I was able to sit down with him and talk to him one-on-one. Puzzle day was great too. It was good to meet and work with other people that were just starting out like I was.

What have you learned about yourself by taking this course?

I learned how fun and challenging programming can be. Every single problem set seemed impossible at first but eventually things click and you're able to solve them. Learning to solve seemingly impossible problems is a vital skill to learn that can be applied to other aspects of life, not just programming.

Every single problem set seemed impossible at first but eventually things click and you're able to solve them. Learning to solve seemingly impossible problems is a vital skill to learn that can be applied to other aspects of life, not just programming.

How has the class helped you achieve your goals?

I was in the construction industry for almost 10 years but I found programming to be more challenging and exciting for me. I set a goal to make the transition from construction to programming. CS50x helped me realize that goal much faster than I had expected. It helped me learn in a structured way so I didn't waste my time bouncing from different online courses. I really love working here and have learned so much. I love the hours, the culture, the people, the daily challenges, everything! Every single day I'm faced with a unique challenge and a lot of times I'll have no idea how to figure it out. But 90% of the time, I'll figure it out before the end of the day. I love being able to code full time every day! Sabre truly is my dream job. It has turned out to be better than I had ever imagined. I now need to dream even bigger and have been setting goals for my next step in my new career. I could not have done it without Launch code and CS50.

What would be your advice to someone interested in signing up for LaunchCode’s next class cohort?

Don't take this class lightly. If you do, it'll be a waste of everyone's time. Take it seriously, put forth the effort and time, and do your very best. If you do, it'll definitely be worth it. Each problem set builds upon the last so do not try to take any shortcuts — it'll cost you in the end. Take your time to fully understand each problem set before going on so you have something to build on for the next one.

I'm now doing what I love and getting paid for it. I'm a Software Developer for a great company working with the technologies that I enjoy.

Anything else you want us to know?

Thanks to CS50x, I'm now doing what I love and getting paid for it. I'm a Software Developer for a great company working with the technologies that I enjoy (JavaScript, Ruby on Rails, HTML/CSS). I'm learning native code (Android and iOS) as well and work on a daily basis with an app that has over 5 million users. I couldn't have asked for a better start in the software industry.