--- title: "From registered nurse to software engineer: my career change journey" description: Gigi started her career as a registered NHS nurse in critical care. Now she's a software engineer at Lantum. Here's how and why she made the career switch. image: https://blog.lantum.com/hubfs/Blog%20headers/dev-blog.png --- [![Lantum](https://blog.lantum.com/hubfs/Lantum%20March2018/Images/logo-header.svg)](https://us.lantum.com) for Locums - [Locums](https://lantum.com/) - [Practices](https://lantum.com/p/practices/) - [Hubs](https://lantum.com/p/hubs/) - [Federations](https://lantum.com/p/nhs-federation/) [Dev team](https://blog.lantum.com/tag/dev-team), [Life at Lantum](https://blog.lantum.com/tag/life-at-lantum) 28 Aug 2020 [![Dev blog: from registered nurse to software engineer](https://blog.lantum.com/hubfs/Blog%20headers/dev-blog.png)](https://blog.lantum.com/from-registered-nurse-to-software-engineer-my-career-change-journey) # From registered nurse to software engineer: my career change journey 0 Comments - [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share) In 2017, I completed my BSc Adult Nursing and started my first nursing job in a busy critical care unit in London. The work was amazing and rewarding. Above all, I enjoyed helping critically sick people to recover and overcome the most vulnerable moments of their lives.  But just under two years later, I left to become a software engineer. #### **Why did I switch from my dream job?** Deciding to go from nurse to software engineer didn’t come out of nowhere. Firstly, I’ve always loved solving logical problems. Growing up in Bulgaria, I had been enrolled in a mathematical high school where I spent 5 years majoring in Computer Science, Maths and English. Even though I really enjoyed coding, I was drawn to humanities, helping others and volunteering for the Bulgarian Red Cross. So when I graduated, I chose to pursue my degree in nursing, but the coding side of me was still there. Secondly, while working in critical care was incredibly rewarding, I did feel a growing frustration with it. The software systems used across the NHS were unreliable, outdated and slow, staff and resources were scarce, and the feeling of burnout was constant. In addition, I saw a lack of career progression opportunities which didn’t involve management. Finally, I was good with technology. At work, I had joined the in-house audit and research nursing team, filling patient data into a SQL database using a click-point system called SAS Enterprise Guide. I truly loved the team I was working with, but the job soon became repetitive. Meanwhile my passion for coding grew more and more.  Eventually, I came to the conclusion that it was time for me to switch careers and try something new. But this decision was definitely not made lightly, and it took me a long time to make the leap.  #### **How did I learn to code? ** I began taking free online courses in C# while still working full-time. Within a few months, my coding hobby grew into a passion which led me to switch to Linux, learn git, bash, HTML, CSS and JavaScript.  I found out about Founders and Coders (FAC) which is a full-stack JavaScript web development bootcamp. I felt I should give it a go and, despite tough competition, I got in. I handed in my resignation the next day. It was extremely liberating - I cannot express the joy of not having to do night shifts ever again! #### **How did I end up at Lantum?** After spending 4 months of full-time on-site classes at FAC over the summer of 2019, I completed my first portfolio and started looking for jobs. Another FAC graduate who was working at Lantum invited me for a pair-programming afternoon. Soon after, I was invited for a job interview, which resulted in an offer to join as a Software Engineer: an  opportunity for which I feel truly blessed and grateful. I cannot think of a company that is more perfectly suited for me. Lantum is trying to solve the exact same problems I had suffered from while working for the NHS. I had great empathy for the users I was going to build software for and felt extremely motivated that I could bring my nursing experience in this new engineering role.  #### **How have I found the change?** I must admit that when I started, I had many feelings of imposter syndrome. Would I be good enough? Will my code ever get deployed to production? Will my ability to learn hit a limit?  But within a few months, I overcame all these fears, thanks to the huge support, mentorship and patience from [all my colleagues](https://blog.lantum.com/tag/dev-team). On top of that, designers included me in their research and prototyping sessions. People value my input and I feel like an asset to the company; my confidence has grown in leaps and bounds. I am excited to keep working for Lantum. Here, I have a supportive and friendly environment that’s full of growth, development and opportunities to tackle real-life challenges. As for my time in nursing, I hope to translate it into building software that serves our users, so their lives can be made a little easier. --- Think you'd be a good addition to our team? Take a look at our open vacancies below. *[![VIEW OPENINGS](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/4378111/7ddcc156-704f-4086-a952-d684730e8c29.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/4378111/7ddcc156-704f-4086-a952-d684730e8c29)* *We want to make a better blog for you.* [*Fill out this 2 minutes survey*](https://lantum.typeform.com/to/PXVWVoCu) *to let us know what you want to see.* ![Gigi Minova](https://blog.lantum.com/hubfs/gigi-minova.jpeg) ### Author [Gigi Minova](https://blog.lantum.com/author/gigi-minova) Gigi is a Software Engineer at Lantum. ### Subscribe to the newsletter ### Subscribe to the newsletter ### About Lantum Lantum is a workforce platform that uses technology to simplify all aspects of healthcare staffing. Our easy-to-use tools empower healthcare organisations to fill their shifts and professionals to fill their diaries, without the need for agencies. 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