Kayla Campbell

What were you doing before you joined The Marcy Lab School as a Software Engineering Fellow?

Before I joined The Marcy Lab School, I attended City Tech as a Computer Systems major.

What most made you want to apply for Marcy’s Software Engineering Fellowship?

I heard good things about Marcy from an alumnus and decided that Marcy offered everything that I needed after reviewing their website. I was drawn by their family-like approach to teaching and was excited about their learning-by-doing concept.

What has been one of your favorite parts of the Fellowship?

I enjoy the projects that we are given at the end of each unit. I love being able to put my knowledge to use and having the free time to do my own research on topics that I find interesting. Outside of classes, I enjoy chilling in the student lounge and playing ping pong with my new friends at Marcy.

What has been most challenging for you as a Fellow?

As a student who also works after school, I find managing my time between school, my personal life, and work to be the most challenging. Assignments are mandatory at Marcy. If you want to do well, you need to make time outside of school to learn more, and I have decided to invest most of my time in being a better software engineer.

How has Marcy prepared you for your future work and career?

By training students to do their own research outside of class to complete assignments, Marcy has prepared me for unfamiliar tasks that will be handed to me when I begin my career as a Full-Stack Software Engineer. This also helps me to keep up with changes that may occur in the tech world. There is always something new to learn, and this Fellowship has taught me how to teach myself new topics.

Apart from our technical instruction, we are required to take a leadership and development class at Marcy. This class has helped me to combat my imposter syndrome both at school and in my professional career. The Marcy Lab School ensures that when students enter the workforce, they are not ashamed to be themselves. We learn not only about our own identities but those of others as well. This ensures that we are able to put our best foot forward by being ourselves and looking out for those around us.

What are some of your goals and future dreams for yourself?

Since I was young, my biggest goal has been to become a software engineer/game developer. I still have this dream at this point in my life, and my dream seems to be more in reach than ever before. My future dreams are that I will have a career doing something that I enjoy (coding) and that I can create a better life for myself than my parents were able to.

What advice do you have for our incoming Fellows?

I would advise incoming Fellows to connect with one another. You will not survive through the year if you try to do everything on your own. The Marcy Lab School requires a lot of hard work and sacrifices, but this is also an amazing community of like-minded individuals. Connect with those around you and help one another. Your future self will thank you.