David's story is a testament to the fact that old dogs can indeed learn new tricks. With his business background and three degrees - a bachelor's in economics, a master's in business administration, and a master's in accounting - he worked in intelligence analysis for the Army for seven years until he was medically discharged. He then found work as a bookkeeper and accountant for a construction company but was eventually laid off when the company ran into financial difficulties.
Determined to find a recession-proof occupation, David began attending job fairs to explore his options. At one such event, he met our LevelUp coordinator, who introduced him to the CyberUp apprenticeship program. This proved to be a turning point for David, as he had been struggling to find work on his own.
David's hobbies were weightlifting and learning. He spent a lot of his free time studying on Udemy and keeping up with cybersecurity news on YouTube and LinkedIn groups. He soon discovered that online resources could be valuable assets in his quest to learn new skills.
Partnering with CyberUp led to David being hired as a cybersecurity analyst with Centene, but he quickly pivoted to become a cloud engineer. He found his work environment to be supportive and inspiring, with regular check-ins from our apprenticeship coordinator. Although working remotely was a new experience for David, it gave him more time to spend with his wife and to cook during his lunch breaks.
When asked for advice for future apprentices, David emphasized the importance of hitting the ground running and using downtime to learn new skills. He also stressed the value of lifelong learning and expressed his goal of furthering his cybersecurity education and becoming a cloud security architect.
Overall, David's story is a reminder that it's never too late to start over and learn new things. With determination and the right resources, anyone can achieve their goals.
