Contents:
- "Beautiful packaging" as a sign of fate
- Creativity + analytics = a favorite profession
- "The curators didn't let me off the hook, and it was amazing"
- "They chewed it up and put it in my mouth": career help
- A message to myself and a response to skeptics
Anzhelika from Minsk is a person who is not afraid to find herself. She graduated from the Minsk State Linguistic University (the famous "Ineiza") and holds a diploma as a German teacher. Then she worked in a variety of fields: from cleaning to teaching in a kindergarten. But the real turning point happened when, already getting her second higher education, she realized that academic knowledge was not enough for her.
"Beautiful packaging" as a sign of fate
It all started on an ordinary weekend. Angelica and her mother were walking around the Galileo shopping center in Minsk - they wanted to unwind, look at the beautiful locations and photo zones.
"We were just walking down the second floor corridor, and my gaze caught on the counter. "There were incredibly beautiful, aesthetically pleasing packages," recalls Angelica. "I'm a visual person, I love everything beautiful, and this creative streak immediately made itself known. I walked up to them, started reading the labels on the boxes, and realized - these are courses."
At that time, Angelica was already a student at the BSU Institute of Business, getting her second degree in Web Design. It would seem that why take courses if there is a university? But the girl had a pragmatic view of things.
"Our university professors always told you honestly: 'We're only giving you the basics. If you want to become a pro, go deeper yourself.' And when the consultant (I think her name was Valeria, a very nice girl) started talking about the program, the puzzle fell into place in my head. I realized: this is it, the very opportunity to go deeper that I was missing at university."
The decision was intuitive, but absolutely correct: Angelica took out an installment plan and bought her first course. Spoiler: not the last.
Creativity + analytics = a favorite profession
Why design? Angelica was looking for a profession that would combine two sides of her character: a creative flight and strict logic.
“Web design is the perfect balance. There is a place for creativity, but there is also analytics, structure, and the IT sphere,” she explains. "I got so hooked that I couldn't stop. First web design, then graphic design... And now I've already completed the fourth course—infographic design. It's addictive, and I want to learn more and more."
By the way, Angelika's creativity manifests itself not only in the digital environment. She designs her own clothing, sews dresses and coats, and is considering taking another course in cutting and sewing to do it like a professional.
"The tutors didn't let me off the hook, and it was amazing."
Having a teaching background, Angelica assessed the training with a strict professional eye. And she was delighted - first of all, by the feedback.
“I am a teacher myself and I know how difficult it is to find an approach to each student, always remain polite and constructive. The Skillbox curators are professionals with a capital P,” the heroine shares her emotions. “They responded very quickly and, most valuable, did not accept work “for the sake of it.”
Anzhelika recalls how her homework was often sent back for revision.
“They described the mistakes to me in detail: where the typography was off, where the indents or spacing were incorrect. I corrected them, and the knowledge was firmly cemented. It was precisely this attention to details like typography and case study layout that helped me in the future."
She completed her first real project during her internship with the platform - she developed a website for a psychologist. It gave me an invaluable feeling: "I can do real things for real clients."
“They chewed it up and put it in my mouth”: career help
The path to a new job wasn’t a bed of roses. Angelica admits there were rejections and moments when she felt like giving up. But the Career Development Center didn’t let her “lose touch with reality.”
“The employees themselves wrote to me, asked how I was doing, reminded me of my goals. It was very invigorating,” says Angelica. “And when it came to looking for a job, they literally chewed up all the information and put it in my mouth. We reviewed my resume, explained to me how to behave at an interview, how to present my skills."
Thanks to this training, Anzhelika received the position of content manager, where she has been successfully working for the second year.
“If you compare my job now with the time when I worked in cleaning or as a teacher… It’s like night and day. I’m happy,” she admits.
A Message to Myself and a Response to Skeptics
What would Angelica, the one standing in front of the counter at the shopping center, tell herself?
"I would look myself in the eyes and say: “Angelica, you are a huge success! You made the right choice. Don’t skimp on money, don’t look for a free lunch. This decision will change your life.” I then intuitively felt the changes that awaited me, and my intuition did not fail me."
Anzhelika often sees negative reviews on the internet, and she has her own opinion on this matter:
"People, I disagree with you! Often the problem is not in the courses, but in ourselves. There is no magic pill, you can’t pay money and expect knowledge to jump into your head. You need to work hard, you need to refine, you need to learn from your mistakes. Skillbox gives you the tools, but you must build your future yourself."
Anzhelika considers "eternal access" to materials a huge plus:
"I know that I can return to lectures in a year or two to refresh my knowledge. This gives me a sense of confidence. For me, Skillbox is the right choice."
You will learn how to design websites and applications, develop convenient and beautiful products that will attract users. In the "Web Designer" course, you'll complete a lot of practical work and build a portfolio that will help you find your first projects.
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