Mabel Ochebiri tells Zarina Camal about winning a hackathon, positive changes to bring about equality and giving back to up and coming women in tech. This interview was in support of the Coding Black Females takeover of the BCS Diversity report 2022.
After scouting out a career in teaching or finance, Ochebiri went to university to study math. It was there that she first got excited about the possibilities of tech.
So tell us about your career?
When I left university I took a trainee software engineer role at a software development company, and basically, I fell in love with my role. Every single day was different.
At the time I knew that I had to take a lot more online classes on the side. So, I started exploring online to find further training as cheaply as possible. And that's when I bumped into Code First Girls and Coding Black Females. There were a few free courses, I took them, I then decided to document my journey, just for me.
I was doing the 100 Days Code challenge online and was introduced to a beautiful community of women in the tech space. So, I've been working in tech ever since and it's been amazing.
What obstacles have you faced on your career journey?
At sixth form I was one of only two females choosing STEM subjects. I thought that was the norm, which it shouldn't be. I then thought, okay some people might be pulled away from these roles because there's not enough women. I've noticed that usually with tech companies more women are usually in leadership roles rather than technical core teams.
I was one of two women on the core team where the other woman was my manager. Having a woman as my manager was very, very encouraging. She really made me feel like part of the family even with the smallest things. However, I did notice she was under a lot of stress.
Continue reading: https://www.bcs.org/articles-opinion-and-research/women-in-it-know-your-worth/
After scouting out a career in teaching or finance, Ochebiri went to university to study math. It was there that she first got excited about the possibilities of tech.
So tell us about your career?
When I left university I took a trainee software engineer role at a software development company, and basically, I fell in love with my role. Every single day was different.
At the time I knew that I had to take a lot more online classes on the side. So, I started exploring online to find further training as cheaply as possible. And that's when I bumped into Code First Girls and Coding Black Females. There were a few free courses, I took them, I then decided to document my journey, just for me.
I was doing the 100 Days Code challenge online and was introduced to a beautiful community of women in the tech space. So, I've been working in tech ever since and it's been amazing.
What obstacles have you faced on your career journey?
At sixth form I was one of only two females choosing STEM subjects. I thought that was the norm, which it shouldn't be. I then thought, okay some people might be pulled away from these roles because there's not enough women. I've noticed that usually with tech companies more women are usually in leadership roles rather than technical core teams.
I was one of two women on the core team where the other woman was my manager. Having a woman as my manager was very, very encouraging. She really made me feel like part of the family even with the smallest things. However, I did notice she was under a lot of stress.
Continue reading: https://www.bcs.org/articles-opinion-and-research/women-in-it-know-your-worth/
