Ashley Wong: How I found community and made my next career move

Welcome to Formation’s Fellow Spotlight, a blog series designed to introduce you to former Formation Fellows who have landed their dream jobs. Today we’ll meet Ashley Wong, a Software Engineer at Capsule. Ashley had a 3-year career in the mental health field before she decided to immerse herself in engineering. Here’s her journey to becoming a Software Engineer at Capsule.

What was your educational/professional background prior to Formation?

I earned my BA in Psychology and my Master's in Mental Health. I spent 3 years in the mental health field before I started looking for a different path.

What originally got you interested in engineering?

It took me a while to figure out I wanted to be an engineer. Once I realized I wanted to change careers, I quit my job and started on a 3-month career search. I had a checklist of things I didn’t want to do, so I started asking friends what they were getting into. I had no exposure to software engineering other than my boyfriend who works at a tech company. So, I just decided to start taking free coding classes online to see if I liked them. After those classes, I felt more excited about the engineering path. I researched coding schools, went to a few Q&As, and finally enrolled in a bootcamp.

I was ready for my next challenge, but I didn’t know which direction to take. There was so much advice online and I didn’t have a clear path forward.

What made you want to up-level your career?

After I graduated from the coding bootcamp, I interned at Kinetik. I worked my way from intern to contractor to full-time Software Engineer and spent a total of a year and a half working there. I was ready for my next challenge, but I didn’t know which direction to take. There was so much advice online and I didn’t have a clear path forward.

Why did you end up choosing Formation?

I spoke to a Formation recruiter and learned about the program structure, what they offered, and the flexibility of deferring payment until getting my next job. I didn’t know if I was ready to move jobs at the time, and I felt like Formation would provide the structure I needed to know when I was ready.

Your junior buddy was Hiwot. What was it like being her senior buddy throughout her Formation journey?

I don’t have that many friends who are also women engineers, so it‘s been nice getting to know her. During our first chat, we didn’t have a ton in common, but we laughed a lot and still managed to find a lot to talk about. We checked in occasionally throughout the Fellowship to see how the other was doing.

Once I started interviewing, I passed the content I was getting asked along to Hiwot so she could start ramping up. I did this when we were both interviewing at Amazon but she was a bit behind where I was in the process. I figured if I didn’t get the job I was interviewing for, at least one of us should. If I could take what I learned and pass it on to her, it would be worth it. While I didn’t end up getting hired at Amazon, she did! We actually talked yesterday and I told her about onboarding at my new job.

There’s a huge difference between doing a mock interview with a peer versus someone who has conducted them before and can actually give guided feedback tailored to what you need to work on.

What was your specific goal in becoming a Fellow?

I was really interested in mentorship, and I started out by wanting to focus on that. Once I got deeper into the program, strengthening my algorithm abilities became more of a focus. I didn’t even know I needed that before coming into the Fellowship!

How did you work with the mentors?

The group sessions and mock interviews were really helpful. There’s such a big difference between doing a mock interview with a peer and someone who has conducted them before and can actually give guided feedback tailored to what you need to work on. One Mentor, Daniel Tomko, made learning so much more fun than I had typically experienced. He was definitely my favorite mentor.

Formation gave me guidance on how to approach things that I wasn’t understanding and helped me learn CS fundamentals that I didn’t learn in my bootcamp, which was essential to passing technicals.

How did you measure your progress/success through the program?

Mostly by the roadmap. If I could complete all the tasks that I was assigned that week, I could usually tell if I was doing better or not by the algo marathon and blitz.

How did Formation help you in your interview process?

I felt prepared. Mock interviews got me in the mindset of being in an actual interview and knowing how to represent myself. Having a designated time where I could practice being in a pressure setting was crucial. Formation gave me guidance on how to approach things that I wasn’t understanding and helped me learn CS fundamentals that I didn’t learn in my bootcamp, which was essential to passing technicals.

What was your actual job interview process like?

First, I had a phone screen. Then I went through to the technical screening round where I pair programmed with a senior engineer. Finally, I had an onsite where I was given two algo problems as a pair session with a senior engineer and an hour-long behavioral interview with someone in management.

What team are you on in your new role?

I’m working on Vesto, a brand new product branched off from the main product.

My biggest surprise about Formation was how big the alumni network is...A few former Fellows even helped me prepare for my Google interview and I’m still in touch with them today.

“Quick-Fire”

First code you shipped at your new job?

The table I added last week was the first code I shipped!

Proudest moment?

Getting out of my old career and starting my new one

Biggest mistake?

Not having looked into mental health before getting that degree. I probably should’ve gone into software engineering from the start.

Favorite group session?

The ones with my favorite mentor, Daniel

Biggest surprise about Formation?

How big the alumni network is! I met two alumni in New York at the beginning of the Fellowship. A few former Fellows even helped me prepare for my Google interview and I’m still in touch with them today.

Interested in becoming a Fellow like Ashley? Apply to our program and get unlimited mock interviews, structured training specific to your career goals, and a community at every step of the way.