Hello Everyone and welcome to my first blog post!

Since the title of this Blog is “Nina’s Software Journey,” I thought I might start out this week with discussing how my journey came to be. How does one decide to take the plunge into computers and software in a post-baccalaureate program, after already obtaining an education in another field? For me, the journey to get here has been long, but also very inspired.

After graduating undergraduate college with a degree in Biology in 2012, I went on to complete four years of medical school, followed by three years of residency training. During medical school and subsequent training, I found myself focused on the many technological aspects of healthcare delivery. Whether it was a health records tracking system or the user interface of health-related machinery, I was always contemplating the ways in which these things could become better and more efficient. While working among colleagues in a large hospital setting as well as directly with patients, I started to notice that there was a gap between those who created the technology and those who would be using the technology. You would be hard-pressed to find someone who understands both computers and software as well as medicine and patient needs. Seeing the pressing need for someone who understood both sides, I felt inspired to learn more about the technological side of my current line of work.

Many years later, in the (dreaded) period of Spring 2020, I was a few months into my career as an independent physician when the COVID pandemic hit. During this time, I was faced with many tough situations regarding healthcare delivery and my future as a medical practitioner. I was also afforded the convenience of time, as my specific specialty saw a loss of need as attention was focused to the frontline. During this time, I was able to reflect on my journey and take the leap into computer science. I spent some time tinkering with tutorials on the Khan Academy website as well as the Harvard CS50 course. I realized that computer science and software engineering allowed me to be creative and combine my interests in math and languages. After doing some research, I decided that a degree in computer science ( as opposed to other methods of learning) would help me build the fundamental foundation I desired. A few months later, I applied to the OSU post-baccalaureate program in computer science and enrolled in Fall of 2020.

Flash-forward to today and I am writing my first blog post for the penultimate course in the program! Sometimes, I look back and cannot believe I have made it this far. The last two years seem like a dreary blur for a variety of reasons but focusing on this new career has instilled a sense of excitement and optimism in me. I feel like I have gained a useful and potentially impactful skill set moving forward and am looking forward to the opportunity to tackle new challenges.