Pursue your passion.

‘I studied Biomedical Science at Kent. I loved my professors and my course mates were amazing – I made lifelong friends – but I didn’t feel the passion they did, so I did some soul searching.

I’ve always loved apps and had considered setting up a side hustle creating my own, employing engineers to help. And then I thought, “Why can’t I be my own engineer?” It was a lightbulb moment. I decided to follow my passion, found a Master’s at Kent and really pushed myself to reach my goal.

When it came to my thesis I was able to combine the technical skills I’d gained in my Master’s with the knowledge from my undergrad to create an app to help women deal with chronic period pain. On the app you can track your symptoms, discover ways to relieve pain and open up an augmented reality meditation experience. I really put everything into that app; it was so satisfying.’ 

Anna’s Master’s was a great success for her personally, but is her new career all that she hoped it would be?

’Absolutely! I work behind the scenes at Spotify and it’s just so cool! Some people think of software engineering as boring but it’s not, you’re literally creating magic! Spotify is all about innovation and collaboration, everyone is passionate about their work, which makes it a great environment to be in. We get together socially both online and in-person and there are lots of opportunities; I attended a conference in New York last year. I love it. 

One of the great things about a software engineering career is that you are allowed to show your personality. To be who you want to be and do what you love is fantastic.’

For Anna, the brave decision to study a new subject and switch careers paid off. She believes it could for you too.