“Planit’s bootcamp showed me that I can achieve anything I want as long I work really hard for it. I’m really happy and proud with what I have achieved in the past year with Planit.”

Zainab, Engineer, Planit

Born and raised in Germany, Zainab never imagine she would ever work or stay overseas. However, this changed when she developed an interest in travelling and exploring the world.

In 2014, Zainab went backpacking in Australia to explore the country and improve her English in the process. Even though Zainab is the youngest in her family, she says she wasn’t intimidated by the challenges that laid ahead.

“I took the risk and travelled to the other side of the world all by myself, not knowing what to expect,” Zainab says. “I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but I was really excited and looking forward to all the adventures I would have!”

And there were no shortage of adventures waiting for Zainab in Australia. In fact, after visiting the many scenic locations on offer, she didn’t want it to end.

“It didn't take me very long to realise that Australia was the country I wanted to live in,” Zainab says. “For some reason, it felt like ‘home’.”

When her travels concluded, Zainab settled in Melbourne to study business management, since she had already studied business before coming to Australia. It was at this time that she first heard about Planit’s Bootcamp Programme, which offers a way for aspiring software testers to kick-start their career.

“While studying in Melbourne, I worked part-time as a café manager and gained valuable leadership and management experience,” she says. “I felt that this, as well as my other skills and experiences, would be useful for the bootcamp, since it was not limited to people with an IT background.”

After finishing her studies in 2017, Zainab applied for the bootcamp and was invited to join. She then spent an intensive five days learning about the ins and outs of testing.

“I was a bit nervous going into it since I didn’t have a background in IT,” Zainab says. “But sometimes you have to go out of your comfort zone and take a chance, just like I did when backpacking in Australia.”

At the end of the bootcamp, Zainab was one of the lucky few to pass and be offered a full-time Analyst position at the Melbourne office. Although it was a gruelling experience (“everyone struggled with the deadlines, which led to sleepless nights and even nightmares about test cases!”), she still looks back fondly at the experience.

“The bootcamp showed me that I can achieve anything I want as long I work really hard for it,” Zainab says. “I not only learned a lot about testing processes and methodologies, but also made some really good friends with the other bootcampers.”

With the bootcamp behind her, Zainab found that she enjoyed testing and the IT field. She also found that she was quite good at it, which led her to becoming an Engineer just over a year after completing the bootcamp.

“I’m really happy and proud with what I have achieved in the past year with Planit,” Zainab says. “I can't wait to see what more my journey has to offer!”