Kenya-born Silvia Muthangya is a two-time graduate of ALX, having completed the Software Engineering programme as well as the Cloud DevOps Engineering programme – living up to the ALX “Do Hard Things” motto! Currently working as a Junior DevOps Engineer at Software Group in Nairobi whilst developing her skills to become a certified Kubernetes Administrator, she is a firm believer in learning as the ultimate pathway to growth. As a member of the newly launched Gold Fellowship – an incredible career accelerator opportunity for selected tech graduates of ALX – Silvia shares some of her biggest career goals and aspirations in tech, along with the role models who inspire her journey.
I’m responsible for the deployment of working applications to different environments (Dev, QA, User Acceptance Testing and Production) at Software Group, running either on Linux or Windows. My role also involves building functional Azure pipelines to implement continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD), setting up and successfully starting Linux or Windows services, data manipulation in SQL and NoSQL databases such as MySQL and MongoDB respectively – and many other tasks!
The hard skills I acquired were C, Python, Flask, JavaScript, ReactJS, Server configuration, load balancing, SSL certificate generation and set up. I also acquired soft skills such as teamwork and collaboration by working on team projects, communication skills, and analysis.
I’m currently working to become a Certified Kubernetes Administrator. In the next few months, I hope to transition into a Frontend Developer/Backend Developer role, maybe even Full Stack – I’m open to all options. I aspire to create even the smallest impact on young minds like myself, and on the world in general, through tech.
In the ALX community, Julien Barbier. In Nairobi’s tech space, I’d say Bigzoo, considering how fast he rose from Moringa. Lastly, I’d say the friends I made during my time at ALX; just seeing their career growth and expansion, and watching their career journeys play out has been amazing.
Learn as much as possible at every opportunity.
It feels like gold! I’ve been given an opportunity to engage in a space where I can only succeed. To have everyone rooting for you – and all you need to do is to show up and be outstanding – feels amazing. From having a Pathfinder to having access to comfortable well-equipped working spaces, and of course the opportunity to interact with other Gold Fellows, the Gold Fellowship creates a healthy environment to learn and grow.
It has helped me visualise more clearly how I want my career to play out. What I appreciate most about having a mentor is having someone I can share my aspirations with. No matter how far-fetched my dreams may seem, they find a way to make them feel achievable. Seeing how my mentor has navigated their own career path is also inspiring to me. It gives me confidence that, with time and effort, everything will fall into place, and I too will achieve my goals.
The Gold Fellowship embodies the saying, “birds of a feather flock together”. It exposes you to like-minded individuals at various stages of their careers, and that provides invaluable insight and inspiration. Observing the outcomes of others’ hard work, persistence and consistency helps paint a picture of what’s possible for your own career. Overall, communities like the Gold Fellowship have an incomparable impact on career growth.
The ROOM Gold Fellowship is an exceptional talent experience designed to support the top 5-10% of ALX tech graduates. With exclusive access to a workspace, a dedicated Pathfinder, and opportunities for lifelong learning, it empowers ALX tech graduates and propels their career growth. Apply today to one of ALX’s world-class programmes so that you can gain entry into the Gold Fellowship.