Today’s spotlight is on Wisler Altidor. Prior to enrolling in Ironhack, he was working at an Amazon warehouse with a desire to start a career that combined his love for design and tech. After completing Ironhack’s UX/UI Design Bootcamp at Ironhack Miami, he was able to build a fulfilling career as a UX/UI Designer.
Wisler learned the top frameworks used by product design teams and connected with the Ironhack community to get his foot on the ground. Check out his story here.
Hey Wisler! Tell us about yourself and what life was like before enrolling in Ironhack.
My name is Wisler, and I graduated from Ironhack's UX/UI bootcamp in 2021 . Currently, I’m a freelance UX/UI designer working on a variety of projects for clients. Right before I started my bootcamp, I was working at an Amazon warehouse as a team member processing online orders. Before that, I worked as a server for 5 years with some other jobs in between.
From a luxurious café to 5 star restaurants in South Beach, I could never keep a job in the service industry for more than one year. It always started with me feeling excited for the new journey, happy about meeting my new team members, and ending with me feeling empty, lost and unaccomplished. Although I gained a lot of knowledge when it comes to customer experience, within a year or so into a job I felt disappointed in myself and the situation. One reason I felt disappointed was because I felt like I wasn't working towards my goal of having a career in the tech industry. After quitting my last job as a server, I decided it was time to try a different industry. That's how I ultimately ended up at Amazon and eventually enrolled at Ironhack.
The Ironhack Experience
What made you choose Ironhack to start your career in UI/UX Design?
I got into UX/UI because I love creating new things and bringing life to them with colors and interactions. For as long as I can remember, I always loved art and creative things. I used to draw in high school and at the time I ended up getting certifications for most of the Adobe software. In college, I was working towards becoming a graphic designer, but as college got more expensive and working a full time job became more challenging, some things just didn’t work out.
Fast forward a year or two, when I met the person that pointed me in the right direction to find my dream career. This person was a student at Ironhack at the time. We talked about my goals of becoming a graphic designer and she told me I should consider becoming a UX/UI designer. She gave me a quick rundown of what a bootcamp is and suggested I take the Ironhack course if I really wanted to do it.
I spent the next couple of weeks researching UX/UI and Ironhack to see what it really is and if it was going to be worth investing in it. The more I researched, the more I loved the career! I made the decision to attend Ironhack and that was the best decision I've made in my whole life.
The bootcamp was amazing! I’m not gonna lie, it was stressful but most importantly it was life changing. I met teachers that ended up being my mentors and my T.A. was super supportive, even after a year after my graduation. I even met new classmates who I ended up being friends with and would occasionally meet up for coffee and talk about UX/UI. The Ironhack community is ridiculously amazing with all the support you get. After completing the bootcamp my mindset changed from "how can I do this?" to "who can I connect with to get this done?" I now understood the true power of networking.
What was your experience with the UI/UX Bootcamp?
My biggest take away is that Ironhack has a lot of resources available for you to use and be successful in your bootcamp/career. Do not be afraid to use them! If you are looking to join Ironhack and are not sure if this is the right place for, well there's 3 things that Ironhack offers. As a grad it's very useful to me and I think it's something to think about if you are thinking of a long term career.
Ironhack offers long-term support to all alumni
Everything you do in the remote class will be accessible and available to you
The Ironhack community is massive
When I was job hunting, 7 out of 10 times I was interviewed or met with an alumni from Ironhack. Networking is key.
What is life like after graduating from Ironhack?
I’m currently working as a freelance UI/UX designer. Prior to this, I worked for Niantic as a UX/UI designer, and it was amazing. I received great feedback and everyone was super friendly and working hard to accomplish our goals. Whether I’m working with clients or at a company, my day to day varies. I work remotely, but when I worked at Niantic I would go in about once a week, mostly to build team chemistry. I submit deliverables on their due dates and usually kick things off with team stand-up, and I have meetings throughout the week for check-ins and updates. Having a fully remote position has allowed me to spend more time with my friends and family and do more of what I love outside of UX/UI.
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A big thanks to Wisler for sharing his thoughts about Ironhack’s UX/UI Design bootcamp!
We loved hearing about how he used all of Ironhack’s career resources and connected with our community to grow his career.
You can connect with Wisler on Linkedin and check out his website to follow his journey and learn more about his current projects.
If you’d like to upskill to enhance your current skills and be part of Ironhack’s supportive community like Wisler, we encourage you to check out our UI/UX Design Bootcamp in addition to our Web development and Data Analytics bootcamps.
We look forward to seeing you in class!
